The film industry needs some fresh, new faces. This June, The Backrooms, directed by Kane Parsons, has shown that movie-goers agree.
In a world of seemingly endless remakes, audiences are searching for something new. This year, a resurgence in original horror has hit theatres, with audiences showing their desire for creative, innovative ideas by returning—for the first time since COVID-19—to support movies in theatres.
Shiloh Miller, third year Film major at Wilfrid Laurier, agreed that audiences were craving creativity, “Film is an art form, art is a means of human expression, and I think the success of indie projects lately proves we’re all desperate to see more of that.”
Sophia Irwin, programmer at the Princess Cinemas and a Laurier Alumni said that, according to a U.S.-based survey by Fandango, Gen Z are now the most frequent cinemagoers.
“I’d say that The Backrooms, amongst other horror films such as Obsession, is proving in the cinema landscape that audiences crave new, young voices,” Irwin said.
“These young audiences often watch young creators grow online and transition into mainstream success. They feel a part of that success when someone their age, someone they’re familiar with, surpasses the newest Star Wars movie at the box office.”
The Backrooms first began as a viral YouTube horror series created by Parsons. Originally, however, the concept emerged in 2019 from an anonymous message board on 4chan. It featured a photograph of an empty, mundane office or storage space, illuminated by buzzing fluorescent lights and covered in monochromatic yellow wallpaper.
Irwin noted this shift as part of a new age of film, akin to the height of the American New Wave in the 1970s
“We’re also seeing the rise of successful films adapted from video games, such as Iron Lung,” Irwin said. “While you could attribute these films’ success to a pre-existing audience, I believe that audiences are also tired of movie franchises and remakes.”
Irwin added that the Princess Cinemas sold out screenings of The Backrooms on opening Thursday and Friday nights, with a demographic predominantly aged 18 to 25 arriving early to secure the best seats in the house. The Backrooms is now officially studio A24’s highest-grossing worldwide release; in less than two weeks, the film garnered US$212 million globally.
The Backrooms is a horror movie like no other. Parsons masterfully builds a world dripping with tension and anxiety. This is due, in part, to the effort put into the set design, which is an unbelievable feat of cinema far beyond the green-screen environments big studios tend to rely on. For this film, Parsons built a set that was 30,000 square feet, constructed on a soundstage in Vancouver. The maze-like practical set was large enough that cast and crew members occasionally got lost trying to navigate it.
“The Backrooms are used as a means of physically exploring a person’s mind, our neural pathways, the memories we hold, the ways we’re “wired”, the cognitive decay we experience with time or trauma or stress, and the self-destructive parts of ourselves that lurk in wait for a chance to consume us.” Miller said
This movie is an unforgettable experience that lingers in the minds of audiences long after it leaves theatres. Showing the industry that audiences will support films made with quality and care will mean more films like The Backrooms in our future.
Miller suggested for audiences to go in with an open mind, “You’re about to be presented with an abstract ink blot on a page and asked what you see when you look at it, maybe your answer will say something about you! I’d strongly argue there is no ‘right’ one.”
