31 Days of Night: 1BR – 7/10

‘I just moved here, I don’t really know anyone…‘

The Bye Bye Man aside, the general standard of horror films throughout this project has been remarkably high. And not just daft horror movie high, but actual good quality filmmaking high. I long for a daft sequel, or a mindless zombie flick. Alas, 1BR isn’t that movie…

Sarah (Nicole Bryden Bloom) is an aimless twenty something looking to get her life back on track following years of unfulfilled potential. A successful application to an exclusive apartment complex appears to turn things around for Sarah, but could it be a little too perfect?

1BR is a familiar tale told in an unfamiliar way. It has echoes of Rosemary’s Baby, and, more recently, Vivarium, without ever being as successful as either. It does prey on our fears of the unknown however, and it does so in a way that is suitably creepy and memorable. Just when the more shocking segments lean into gratituitism, writer/director David Marmor reigns it in enough to ensure a slow build of tension.

The mostly inexperienced cast do a good job in making their insidious gated community feel like a lived in and battle worn bunch – an eclectic mix of characters helps, as does a wide range of performances. Each character has a mundanity that makes the events that unfold onscreen all the more sinister, and 1BR is all the better for it.

There are better films in this subgenre, but there are also many that are much worse. In the context of 31 Days of Night as a whole however, 1BR sits snugly in the middle.