Just in time for Halloween, “His House” began streaming on Netflix on Friday, Oct. 30. I’ve reviewed many horror movies, but this one is genuinely the scariest one I have reviewed. Warning, if you get scared easily, this might not be the movie for you. And don’t watch it by yourself.
Unlike other horror movies, “His House” has a great backstory. It’s about a refugee couple who comes to the United Kingdom from Africa. They have to escape a military state and pile onto a small boat to cross the ocean. To start off the movie, we see select scenes from their travel to England, including the introduction of the couple and their daughter. We also see someone drown off the boat in the ocean, and just like that, the next scene starts.
Their stay in England is very restricted. They are given a house and money weekly, but they are not allowed to work or make friends. The house they live in is really bad. The lights don’t work, which does go along with the whole horror aspect. There are visible holes in the wall from burns, and the house is overall very small.
Not only does the couple have some sort of paranormal activity to deal with, but they also have to deal with racism in England. The way people talk to them is demeaning, and they even deal with anti-immigrant hatred. This is portrayed in their daily lives dealing with people in their neighborhood and surrounding community. While the husband, Bol, is trying his hardest to fit into this new country, his wife, Rial, is nostalgic and feels out of place in England. Bol’s stubbornness to stay and not go back to Africa heightens the paranormal activity. This was a stark difference between this movie and other horror films. Most don’t focus on the characters’ daily lives or even address their background. We find most main characters in horror films to be wealthy, and never in a minority group. It’s not a coincidence that this was one of the best horror films I have seen. I was genuinely terrified.
A lot of thriller films with paranormal activity usually deal with demons or ghosts rooted in Christianity. The paranormal activity in this movie was based on evil in Sudanese myth and oral storytelling passed down over the years. This opened the opportunity for the producers to use different jump scares and cinematography. The scenes were amazing. In some parts, the demon gets into their head and we get to see inside and it’s beautiful. The past haunts them in many different ways: in the dark, in the light, and in their mind, and each was portrayed in a way that makes you truly frightened.
Another difference is the plot. Many horror films start off very slow and boring. In general, most of the big scares don’t happen until closer to the end. In “His House,” they do not hesitate to bring out the big scares at the beginning. I think that makes it better; it’s easier to get hooked, and dragging out the beginning is the worst part of some horror movies. It also does not just focus on jump scares; the movie has a lot of character development, and you really empathize with the couple and their situation. Seeing inside their mind and their fears also makes it more realistic.
I won’t spoil everything. You’re going to have to watch to see the jump scares and storyline, and I would highly recommend you do. It was a surprisingly quick watch—only an hour and a half—but so much happens in that time. Next time you’re looking for a good scare, watch “His House” available on Netflix.
