Men (2022) Movie Review

A24 has become one of Hollywood’s most reliable genre studios, delivering some of the best horror films of the past 10 years. With the likes of ‘The Witch’, ‘Midsommar’, ‘The Lighthouse’, ‘Hereditary’ and 2022s ‘X’. They have struck gold again, with yet another great horror film in Alex Garland’s ‘Men’. ‘Men’ marks Garland’s second venture with the studio after ‘Ex Machina’ in 2015. ‘Men’ follows a young woman, who vacations to the English countryside, following the death of her ex-husband, but all isn’t as it seems. The film has a very talented cast, led by Jessie Buckley (I’M Thinking of Ending Things, The Lost Daughter) and Rory Kinnear (Penny Dreadful, Skyfall & The Imitation Game) and Alex Garland’s trademark style. So, with an interesting premise and talent in front of and behind the camera, I was excited to see what ‘Men’ would be like, and I was immensely satisfied.

‘Men’ is not your typical horror film, although it does feature a lot of tropes, we have come to expect from A24 films. The film serves as an allegory for toxic masculinity, which is hinted at in the films title, ‘Men’. Alex Garland uses his careful and sure-handed direction to ensure that these themes are never preachy and serve their place in the film. Garland’s direction here is spectacular, with the film possessing his signature style and look. The film constantly feels eerie, with off-kilter performances and a sinister tone that garland does so well to capture. This is Garland’s first foray into directing a full-blown horror feature. Whilst he has had elements of horror in his previous films ‘Annihilation’ and even ‘Sunshine’ (which Garland co-wrote), ‘Men’ is a straight up horror film, with undertones of drama and a coming-of-age- story as well, thrown in there.

As mentioned, the performances here are fantastic with Jessie Buckley once again proving she is one of the best young actresses working in the industry today. The way she portrays the various emotions she is feeling throughout the film is amazing, showing fear, strength and every emotion in between. She does such a great job with the material here. Rory Kinnear’s performance as well is mesmerising and terrifying. Garland gets the best out of both leads here and really creates a tense atmosphere through amazing character work.

All-in-all, ‘Men’ is one of 2022s best horror films. It is well-crafted from director Alex Garland, the cast are amazing with Jessie Buckley delivering a career-best performance and the film is genuinely unnerving and will stick with you, long after the credits roll. ‘Men’ is now available on DVD and Blu-Ray, now, head on over to your local Sanity or online, to pick-up your copy today. You won’t want to miss this one.

Buy Men on DVD or Blu-ray here!

Christopher Pattison wrote this blog post for Sanity. See more from Chris here