While the new horror film Obsession continues to rake in record-breaking box office receipts, another highly anticipated title is set to arrive in the coming days that fans of the genre will want to keep an eye on: we’re talking about Backrooms, the latest release from the renowned production company A24. In the upcoming horror film by Kane Parsons—known to fans of his original viral short films such as “The Complex”—the labyrinthine structures where the story is set are what instill fear: and apparently, the sets put actress Renate Reinsve through a grueling ordeal during filming.
“I was a little worried I was going to lose my mind in there, though I think that would have been good for the character,” the Oscar-nominated actress told GamesRadar+ when asked how the 2,800-square-meter set had influenced her performance. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone so excited when I arrived on set. Kane was just stunned, seeing what he’d built on the computer, built around us—and it really was a scary, creepy place. I would never go there alone.”
In Backrooms, Renate Reinsve plays Dr. Mary Kline, a therapist whose patients include Clark (Chiwetel Ejiofor), the owner of a struggling furniture store. Ever since his wife left him, Clark has been sleeping in the store, and one night he stumbles upon a seemingly endless dimension with walls covered in yellow. Everywhere he looks, there are corners, eerie-looking household objects, and signs that don’t quite make sense; the only thing keeping him company is the hum of the fluorescent lights on the ceiling. Or at least that’s what he thinks at first…
“It’s surprisingly existential on many different levels. I think this film can be interpreted in many ways, such as how culture, artificial intelligence, and technology are evolving,” the actress continues, carefully trying to avoid spoilers. “There’s this extrapolated world, with no end in sight, and it’s scary. But it also speaks to the psychology of these characters and how things can become distorted while appearing the same, and how sometimes you can only make sense of something irrational with something else that’s irrational. It has many layers of meaning.”
When it comes to mazes in horror films, the first titles that immediately come to mind are certainly Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining and Vincenzo Natali’s The Cube: will Backrooms manage to carve out a place for itself among these two cult classics of the past?
We’ll find out starting May 27, the release date in Italy for A24’s new horror film.
