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5 Films to Watch if You Loved "The Menu" (2022)

By now I'm sure we've all heard about the newest horror comedy starring Anya Taylor Joy and Ralph Fiennes that has been taking the world by storm. The way this film melds precisely timed comedic moments into the suspenseful environment these characters are in without breaking the tension is marvelous, and the exact reason why is has been praised by many. When a group of elitist snobs (and Margot) attend an overpriced exclusive dinner experience on an isolated island hosted by a deranged world renowned chef, the film takes a turn from an intense slow burn to a batshit crazy action-packed evening.

"The Menu" holds a very impressive and unique ability to keep the audience intrigued and guessing at every turn, not sure what's going to happen but knowing it can't be good. The way it invokes dread during every dish is what's so captivating and exciting about it. So if that's something you deeply enjoyed about this film, here are 5 others sure to feed your appetite.

The Invitation (2015) dir. Karyn Kusama

"The Invitation" is the most impressive example of innocent yet unusual situations turned diabolical and menacing within seconds before your eyes. When Will (Logan Marshall Green) and his new girlfriend attend a dinner party at his ex wife Eden's (Tammy Blanchard) home in the company of all their closest friends, unresolved trauma of their relationship looms over the entire evening. Things turn even more sinister when Eden and her husband Will's (Michiel Huisman) new friends from a "wellness retreat" join the party, adding to the uncomfortable tension plaguing the evening. This night goes from bad to worse, but the true mastery of this film is the way it depicts trauma and how it eats away at people, how people will look for anything and everything to feel alright again, to find their sense of purpose again. Not everyone processes or deals with trauma in the same way, and "The Invitation" shows how easy it is for desperation and grief can be manipulated, taken advantage of, and turned into something horrifying.

The Lodge (2019) dir. Veronika Franz, Severin Fiala

Isolation horror and religious horror are two of the most popular sub-genres of horror, and "The Lodge" combines them both in the most magnificent way. The movie surrounds Grace (Riley Keough) as she joins her fiance and soon to be stepchildren Mia (Lia Mchue) and Aiden (Jaeden Martell) on a trip to their remote winter cabin. When work pulls her fiance away and she is left with the two children alone, a blizzard traps the three in the cabin and things begin to go bump in the night. The psychological trauma that Grace has endured in her life, coupled with the hatred and resentment the two children have for her begin to get to her head. "The Lodge" makes a simple story of a family caught in a snow storm and elevates it to seem more petrifying than I could have ever imagined, and the unravelling of the individuals stuck in that cabin grips your interest the entire time.

tw: suicide

The Platform (2019) dir. Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia

"The Platform" is a social commentary on the class system and how vicious it can be, how people on the top take whatever they can and leave nothing for the rest. It takes greed and gluttony to an extreme level. This dystopian hellscape is set in a large tower type construction and involves two people per level living in the tower, with its residents switching levels every month at random. It becomes the home for Goreng, who volunteered to spend six months in "The Pit" in exchange for his diploma, and Trimagasi, who is serving a year long sentence in the facility for manslaughter. Each resident gets one item to bring into "The Pit," and while Goreng brings a copy of Don Quixote, Trimagasi brings his self sharpening knife. With at least 200 levels theorized by the residents, the only source of food and sustenance is a single platform that travel through the center of every level. It begins at the top, and makes its way down to the very bottom. As you can already guess, the lower the platform gets the less food there is for residents to eat, which leads to the most extreme and basic natural instinct; eat or be eaten. The commentary on this film takes its critiques on capitalism and social systems that favor the rich and shoves it right in your face. It forces you to look at humanity at its most masochistic, and how capitalist or socialist systems turn us against each other.

Barbarian (2022) dir. Zach Creggens

As another heavy hitter of 2022, "Barbarian" stampedes into the horror genre as one of this decade's best. What I feel to be the absolute best depiction of modern technology and horror opens with Tess (Georgina Campbell) struggling to get into her Airbnb after it was double booked to her and Keith (Bill Skarsgard) for the same night. Without giving too much away, the unsettling moments and utter suspense have you on the edge of your seat with brief bouts of comic relief reminding you to breathe. Breakout director Zach Creggens created an outstanding film that I can already tell will withstand the tests of time and become an ultimate horror cult classic, while the hilarious and talented Scream King Justin Long adds to the different dynamics between the characters and brings this movie to another level of excellence. If you think you can guess what's coming, no you fucking can't.

Ready or Not (2019) dir. Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett

Ready or not, here comes Samara Weaving as one of this generation's favorite scream queens in this violently funny horror comedy. The movie opens to Grace's (Weaving) wedding day as she gets ready to marry Alex (Mark O'Brien) and join the LeDomas family, an affluent family who's ancestors gained their fortune from a man named LeBail. In order for the family to hold up their end of the LeBail deal and keep their fortune, they must uphold the tradition of playing a game from chosen by a puzzle box anytime someone marries into the family. When Grace draws the "Hide and Seek" card, it soon becomes apparent to her that this game of hide and seek is more sinister and deadly than she initially thought. Between the cynical alcoholic brother Daniel (Adam Brody), the coked up sister who can't seem to do anything right, and Weaving's incredible ability to make even the most violent and gruesome encounters a little humorous, "Ready or Not" is a masterpiece of social commentary horror comedies.

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