It Comes at Night is an intimate, frightening tale. Set in a seemingly abandoned house in the woods, it’s the story of a small family’s survival in an unspoken apocalypse. Rather than getting bogged down in what has happened, the film looks to the aftermath of the event. The cold open is the mercy killing of a virus-infected elderly relative, and things never really let up from that. It’s the sort of film that makes your breath catch in your chest and your mind race with worry about what could be just beyond the dim light of a lantern. Tension is built and released with expert timing, toying with cinematography and natural lighting, as well as some truly exceptional performances from its small cast. It Comes at Night shines from start to finish, the beautiful art of a careful hand and a sharp mind.
