The Stream: Meandering, slow and too inscrutable

The Big Screen: An interesting premise and creepy production design

The Final Bill: A great premise fails to find an interesting plot to support a full movie.

– Trip Fontaine
Director: Kane Parsons
Writers: Will Soodik based on a series by Kane Parsons
Stars: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve, Mark Duplass, Finn Bennett, Lukita Maxwell
Genre: Horror, Sci Fi, Thriller
Rating: R for language and some violent content/bloody images.
Runtime: 1 hour 43 minutes
Production Companies: A24, 21 Laps Entertainment, Atomic Monster, Chernin Entertainment, Oddfellows Pictures, Phobos
Platform: In theaters May 29, 2026
Notable Trailers: Disclosure Day, Supergirl, Verity, The Invite, The Death of Robin Hood

What’s up, Streamers! I’ve been recently talking about all of the movies coming to theaters with original concepts and interesting voices. Backrooms is another film that has a highly original premise from a new filmmaker. If you’ve seen the previews for this one, you don’t know what you’re in for and you’ve likely never seen anything like it before. In Backrooms, Clark (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a smalltime furniture store owner, who has been engaging in therapy to address his alcoholism and divorce, finds a portal in the basement of his store that leads to vast liminal spaces, which are the Backrooms. When Clark stops responding to her, Clark’s therapist, Mary (Renate Reinsve), who has her own past trauma, follows Clark into the creepy vast spaces. Dark corners and creepy creature hijinks ensue.

Backrooms has a lot going for it: an intriguing and creepy premise; stark and interesting production design, an eerier vibe and tone that permeates the screen; and two stellar acting performances by Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve. Unfortunately, in my opinion, Backrooms has one overarching flaw, which is that it is a high concept film in search of a story. The film is all idea without a connective plot to get it from beginning to end. The filmmakers have written interesting characters with full, complicated psyches; and they have put them in a tense and enigmatic situation; however, these two things do not come together enough to make the overall product compelling. The pacing of the film is too deliberate and slow that it will lose some audience members along the way. Yes, it is cool to explore the Backrooms, but it feels like the movie is just wandering from place to place in search of a plot. Questions are raised that go unanswered, and it feels like weird stuff happens just because. That’s wholly unsatisfying, which makes this movie feel frustrating and boring. There’s so much potential that goes unrealized.

Ultimately, Backrooms has all of the pieces to make a creepy horror-thriller, but those pieces do not come together to make a compelling movie. The high concept is great, but the movie wanders around and fails to provide satisfying answers or intriguing twists that feel complete. The acting is great, the production design is top notch, and vibe perfectly evokes creepiness, but the rest is frustrating, slow and a little boring. Nevertheless, the incredible concept is enough for me to suggest a bowl of popcorn at a matinee, but don’t get lost in there.