This article contains spoilers for "Weapons" and "Skinamarink."
The concept of a festering rot infecting a community due to its concealed existence is by no means revolutionary, but a good filmmaker can make it feel fresh and new. Enter "The Whitest Kids U'Know" co-founder Zach Cregger, who emerged as a promising new face in the world of horror with 2022's subterranean nightmare "Barbarian." Blending his comedic sensibilities with a demented horror movie about people discovering a labyrinthine sexual torture basement could have gone sideways in a whole number of ways, but Cregger pulled off a minor miracle. He provides moments of catharsis, albeit never at the expense of the horrors assaulting his most vulnerable characters. The bold twists and turns that "Barbarian" takes ensured