A24's "Backrooms" Brings Internet Phenomenon to Life

Walls yellowed with age, stained beige carpet, the ever-present low hum of fluorescent lights, rooms that seem to go on for miles and miles in an endless maze. The thought of being completely alone is dwarfed by the much more terrifying reality that...you aren't. This is the internet phenomenon known as "The Backrooms," a horror concept focusing around liminal spaces that are as strange as they are familiar. Spawned all the way back in 2019 from an image board on 4chan, it has become ubiquitous throughout the internet from Reddit to Tiktok to Youtube. This week, The Backrooms made their silver screen debut thanks to A24, but is it a triumph or something that never should've left the confines of the internet?

Backrooms is a new horror feature by the studio's youngest ever director, 20 year old Kane Parsons who rose to fame after his Youtube series about The Backrooms went viral on Youtube. Parsons did not create the concept of The Backrooms, but capitalized on it, utilizing his unmatched skills on the software Blender to create an immersive horror experience. A24 saw the potential for a feature film and ran with it. Written by Will Soodik and produced by industry titans like James Wan, Osgood Perkins, and Shawn Levy, an absurd amount of brainpower was used to make Parsons' vision come to life.

Backrooms takes place in 1900 and centers around Chuck, (Chiwetel Ejiofor) the destitute owner of a discount furniture store who one day finds an invisible portal leading to the infamous Backrooms in the basement of his store. This leads him into a downward spiral monitored by his therapist Mary (Renate Reinsve) who later discovers the location for herself and the horrors within. The film also stars the likes of Mark Duplass. Lukita Maxwell, Finn Bennett, and Avan Jogia.

As someone who has been familiar with The Backrooms since its inception, I found myself, like millions of others, eagerly awaiting the theatrical release of this film. It did however, end up being more of a mixed bag than I expected. My biggest fear was that by following a traditional narrative structure, more time would be spent talking about and explaining The Backrooms rather than exploring them. This fortunately, was not the case. Most of this film takes place within the confines of the yellow walls. A24 and company definitely understand that the terror of The Backrooms comes from the unknown and unexplained. It's confusing, uncanny, and unnatural, it's clear that the filmmakers took that into account.

Technically speaking, Backrooms is a marvel both visually and auditory. The biggest standouts being the art direction by Alan Derkson and production design by Danny Vermette who truly made The Backrooms come to life on screen. Additionally, the sound design by Eugenio Battaglia and Robert W. Booth add so much to the film's palpable sense of dread. Special kudos are in order for the music by Edo Van Breeman and director, Kane Parsons. Not to mention the absolutely stunning visual effects throughout. It's abundantly clear how much thought, attention, and effort went into making this film.

On the other hand, Backrooms struggles a little bit more in the writing department. I appreciate the addition of mental illness as a theme as both leads Chuck and Mary are clearly dealing with some significant anguish that manifests in The Backrooms. However, this doesn't feel adequately explored enough. My biggest qualm with the film is that it ends quite abruptly leading it to feel in my opinion, unfinished. Backrooms has been out for less than two weeks and has already seen incredible success both critically and commercially so a sequel seems inevitable, but I think ending a film in an unfinished way to explicitly make room for a sequel is a cop-out.

With all of that being said, it is hard not to feel impressed by this film. Despite his age, Kane Parsons is already proving himself to be a talented director solely from the way he was able to get some incredible performances out of Ejiofor and Reinsve.

Ultimately, Backrooms feels like a beacon of hope and the start of a positive change. Hopefully the success of this film will convince studios to invest in young, promising talent as well as practical effects that don't rely on computers or AI. Considering that this major blockbuster was spawned from one single image on the internet and helmed by a Youtuber who's not even old enough to legally drink, Backrooms truly is something to behold.