10 Horror Movies So Good You Overlook Major Flaws

3. The Last Five Minutes Is Cliched - Barbarian

WARNING - SPOILERS!

In Barbarian, two strangers, Keith and Tess, find themselves sharing an Airbnb for the night. When they discover a tunnel in the basement, they venture downward, where they're attacked by a savage inbred called The Mother. After Keith is killed, The Mother imprisons Tess, hoping to raise her as her "baby". When the landlord visits the Airbnb and finds the tunnel, he and Tess try to escape.

Almost immediately after Barbarian was released, it was regarded by many as the best horror film of 2022. Even though such a label sounds hyperbolic, it's easy to see why. Barbarian uses a lot of misdirection and mystery, so viewers have no idea what's going to happen next. On two occasions, it cuts to a seemingly unrelated scene at the moment of maximum tension, keeping viewers permanently on edge.

Even though Barbarian is astonishingly creative, it loses steam in the final moments. Although The Mother seems slightly supernatural, she comes across as figure that could theoretically exist.

But in the last scene, it's revealed she has superstrength on par with a comic book villain. Even though she's heavily emaciated, The Mother can smash through walls like the Juggernaut, rip off arms with ease, and survive a 20ft fall.

Why the filmmakers decided to turn this tragic creature into Jason Voorhees in the last five minutes is bewildering.