10 Recent Horror Movies That Blew Great Concepts
6. Old (2021)
Loosely based on the graphic novel Sandcastle, M. Night Shyamalan’s Old sees a family arrive at an upmarket island resort to begin what they hope will be a memorable holiday.
On their first morning, the family – and some other holidaymakers – are whisked away to a secluded beach to spend the day, per the recommendation of the resort's manager.
Not long after arrival, however, things start to go wrong when one of the beachgoers is found dead. Events only get exponentially weirder when it's discovered that everyone on the beach is aging at a remarkably fast rate. With tensions rising in the group, they must figure out a means of escape before they lose too many years of their lives.
By throwing audiences into this bizarre situation alongside its characters, Old begins as a compelling mystery with moments of effective body horror.
But after the reveal of the grand twist, this flick falters as fast as the characters age. The film raises some interesting ethical questions, but the script doesn't know what to do with them. Without exploring their implications further, this slow-burn horror sizzles out with little fanfare until everything that made this premise interesting disappears.