Posted in: A24, Horror, Movies | Tagged: a24, alex garland, film, horror, men
Alex Garland Says His New Film 'Men' Has a Folk Horror Subgenre
Alex Garland is responsible for some rather unique and interesting ideas in his projects like Annihilation or Ex Machina, but his new film offers a slightly different subgenre feel.
The A24 film, titled Men, is set to be released in late May, meaning that there are certainly some new traditional A24 expectations. For example, in their other celebrated horror films so far, there's always a certain atmospheric tension that often serves as the trend for modern ("elevated") horror. That portion comes to life in full force with the recently revealed trailer for the film (included below). Now, the film's director adds a little fresh spin on his previous work by recently telling Empire that Men is not technically in his previous comfort space of sci-fi/horror.
Garland tells the publication, "Yeah, it's not sci-fi," the director first tells the outlet. "If we're gonna get into subgenres, the subgenre here is folk horror." Later adding, "It's the horror of rural England, It's certain kinds of churches, certain kinds of forest – the shadows within dark green. That kind of thing."
There's plenty of secrecy surrounding the plot of the film at the moment, which is fairly standard for anything relatively good in the horror world. Still, based on the film's currently shared synopsis, there's just enough to intrigue moviegoers. The plot description reads: "In the aftermath of a personal tragedy, Harper retreats alone to the beautiful English countryside, hoping to have found a place to heal. But someone or something from the surrounding woods appears to be stalking her. What begins as simmering dread becomes a fully-formed nightmare, inhabited by her darkest memories and fears in visionary filmmaker Alex Garland's shape-shifting new horror film."
The upcoming horror film stars Jessie Buckley and Rory Kinnear, with a theatrical release date currently slated for May 20. What are your thoughts on the first look at Men?