Under The Shadow (2016) - 7/10

A thrilling horror shot in the Middle East might seem like a curveball, but this is worth 90 minutes of any viewers time. Based in the 1980s Iran/Iraq war, with a backdrop like that, it’s no surprise that this feels very heavy from the get go. Our focus is Shideh (Narges Rashidi), a young mother who finds herself in an increasingly oppressive country. She doesn’t fit. She studies medicine, or did until the university finds an excuse to kick her out. She’s not religious. She drives, wears yoga pants at home and doesn’t cover her hair. She exercises to Jane Fonda VHS tapes. It’s kitchen sink in tone to start, as she argues with her unsympathetic husband. Until he’s drafted in the war and an ominous drone score beckons something darker. Her daughter, Dorsa (Avin Manshadi) is scared, of the bombs falling in the city and of evil spirits. Both are real dangers and both are getting closer. It’s sparse, taking place largely inside Shideh’s apartment and maybe it’s this that heightens the eerie atmosphere. Whatever it is, it’s effective and provides the perfect canvas for some genuine nightmare fuel. It’s a stressful environment, that could explain missing dolls, damaged tapes, disturbing visions. It is heavy on the tropes, but blimey it uses them well. Whether Shideh and Dorsa’s fears are real or whether it’s all the result of unimaginable  stress, this is a pretty great edge of your seat psychological thriller. Both leads are great, the sound design is fantastic and the story leans on you in all the right places. It’s not perfect, but it’s much more than the sum of its parts. Director Babak Anvari recently brought us Hallow Road, which is also worth a watch.

7/10