Backrooms
The Backrooms have been a staple in internet horror for a very long time, to the point where no one is even certain when the iconic photo that started it all was originally posted. From that photo stemmed a really well put together and distinctly original youtube series from director Kane Parsons that changed the creepypasta landscape. For how cool The Backrooms youtube series was, it’s really disappointing that the film adaptation didn’t hit the mark for me.
I don’t know if I just didn’t get it or what, but I have a lot of problems with the film. Before I go into the problems I had though, I’d like to go into the things I liked about the film.
The atmosphere of The Backrooms themselves were really unsettling, especially at certain parts. The stairs leading up to the door on the ceiling genuinely got me because of the heights. I feel like they really got the atmosphere down really well, at least until a certain point. I really liked the cinematography and the color grading of the film as well. That’s really the only thing I personally liked about this film.
The whole concept of this film was very confusing to me. We have no clue what motivates these characters, and the film gives us no reason to root for or feel anything for the characters. We are given such little backstory and no “why” when it comes to them. It genuinely just felt like a big nothing burger. I feel like if the film had given us just a little bit more of why the main character felt this need to pursue his exploration of the backrooms it would have felt more real. He didn’t have any push back from anyone about what he had found, no real reason to go out of his way to prove it at all, and all anyone ever said to him when he tried to tell them was basically, “okay, buddy”. They really could have done something with his struggles with his wife leaving him, but it was just another thread that led to nowhere.
My biggest problem stems from this: the traumafication of the whole thing. There was no reason to try and make the backrooms into some descent into trauma. A24 has a big reputation of making films about trauma and overcoming it, which is fine but it feels very tired when every single film that comes out now has a thematic stem in trauma. The most depressing thing about it though is that it COULD have worked. All it did was put certain motifs from the main characters storefront around the place in a disorientated way as if to mock him in some profound way, and that just does not work for me.
The whole Async Corp. storyline and exploration of it from the workers in the youtube series made so much more sense and was much more interesting. Sure, Async Corp. was integrated into the film, but not nearly as well and not in an interesting way either.
My biggest problem with this film though is just nothing happened in this film. It was a lot of walking, a lot of therapy appointments, and a lot of things that could have lead somewhere but didn’t. It was to the point that I got so bored that I looked up the run time and thanked my lucky stars that the film was only an hour and 45 minutes long. This film tried so hard to be profound but it just didn’t hit the mark. I can see why some people would like the film, but its not for me.
I don’t know if I just didn’t get it or what, but I have a lot of problems with the film. Before I go into the problems I had though, I’d like to go into the things I liked about the film.
The atmosphere of The Backrooms themselves were really unsettling, especially at certain parts. The stairs leading up to the door on the ceiling genuinely got me because of the heights. I feel like they really got the atmosphere down really well, at least until a certain point. I really liked the cinematography and the color grading of the film as well. That’s really the only thing I personally liked about this film.
The whole concept of this film was very confusing to me. We have no clue what motivates these characters, and the film gives us no reason to root for or feel anything for the characters. We are given such little backstory and no “why” when it comes to them. It genuinely just felt like a big nothing burger. I feel like if the film had given us just a little bit more of why the main character felt this need to pursue his exploration of the backrooms it would have felt more real. He didn’t have any push back from anyone about what he had found, no real reason to go out of his way to prove it at all, and all anyone ever said to him when he tried to tell them was basically, “okay, buddy”. They really could have done something with his struggles with his wife leaving him, but it was just another thread that led to nowhere.
My biggest problem stems from this: the traumafication of the whole thing. There was no reason to try and make the backrooms into some descent into trauma. A24 has a big reputation of making films about trauma and overcoming it, which is fine but it feels very tired when every single film that comes out now has a thematic stem in trauma. The most depressing thing about it though is that it COULD have worked. All it did was put certain motifs from the main characters storefront around the place in a disorientated way as if to mock him in some profound way, and that just does not work for me.
The whole Async Corp. storyline and exploration of it from the workers in the youtube series made so much more sense and was much more interesting. Sure, Async Corp. was integrated into the film, but not nearly as well and not in an interesting way either.
My biggest problem with this film though is just nothing happened in this film. It was a lot of walking, a lot of therapy appointments, and a lot of things that could have lead somewhere but didn’t. It was to the point that I got so bored that I looked up the run time and thanked my lucky stars that the film was only an hour and 45 minutes long. This film tried so hard to be profound but it just didn’t hit the mark. I can see why some people would like the film, but its not for me.
Summary
Overall, this film lacked in its writing and it really just didn’t hit properly. I wanted to like this film a lot, and it really disappointed me that it didn’t live up to its youtube series predecessor. It was confusing and nothing tied together.
