The Horror Show
Hidden
by Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer
If you know me and who I am, then you definitely know the way to my heart: apocalyptic fiction. From books to film to television to video games, there’s not much dystopian or apocalyptic that gets by this girl. The recent release, Hidden starring Alexander Skarsgard and Andrea Riseborough, is a claustrophobic, mysterious, and refreshing horror-thriller that entertained me not only the first time I watched it, but even more-so the second time around.
Ray, Claire, and their daughter, Zoe, live in a bomb shelter, sneaking around like little mice so as not to be found by the mysterious and dangerous “Breathers” that live on the surface. Little is known about the Breathers other than if they find Ray and his family, all that they’ve done to survive will have been for nothing. We’re treated to small flashbacks here and there of normal life before the sudden onset of a deadly virus and they’re executed damn well. They barely reveal anything while simultaneously sucking you in, making you desperate to learn more.
Ray and Claire try so hard to make life as normal as possible in the bunker for young Zoe as they play games, homeschool her, and tell stories to keep her occupied so she doesn’t worry about the Breathers. Life in the bunker is rough; their food supply is dwindling, water is hard to come by, and it gets harder each day for the family to maintain their optimism. But as long as the family follows their own set of rules, they’ll be able to survive. There’s one extremely important rule they must follow, “never lose control,” and it’s made very clear just how important that rule is.
A fire starts in the bunker and it’s at this point that all hell breaks loose. Up until that moment, the film was a seriously slow burn that bordered on boring, but the characters felt real and the backstory was shrouded in such mystery that you had to keep watching. After the fire, one unfortunate thing after the other befalls this family who have tried so hard for so long to stay hidden and alive, and you can’t help but root for them while also battling this internal desire for the Breathers to be revealed so you can know what the hell is truly going on out there!
There’s no way I could give anymore of the plot up, it would be nothing but a waste. Like I said in the first paragraph, I watched this movie twice, and I think it was more satisfying the second time because I knew what was coming, and I was able to appreciate the near-perfect subtlety the story offered that I missed on the first viewing. The story, the ending, the overall way that the puzzle finally comes together is extremely satisfying and refreshing and I don’t know how this movie is not being talked about more in horror and apocalyptic circles.
I for one would recommend Hidden to anyone, but more specifically for genre lovers because this is a fresh and captivating take on what seems to be a saturated market. Bravo.
Stevie Kopas, HMS
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