Original title: | In a violent nature |
Director: | Chris Nash |
Release: | Cinema |
Running time: | 94 minutes |
Release date: | 31 may 2024 |
Rating: |
In a Violent Nature, written and directed by Chris Nash, is a horrific experience that defies convention while embracing the most brutal and primitive instincts of the slasher genre. It's a film that sticks in your mind not just because of its kills - though they are among the most gruesome and inventive in recent memory - but also because of its bold commitment to perspective, pace and tone. This is not a film interested in jump scares, or even the traditional tension of horror. On the contrary, it invites you to enter the world of a killer, not through his eyes, but right behind him, as if you were an invisible force following his every move, the shadow of a grim reaper. It's a method that's both hypnotic and unsettling, making you an accomplice to the carnage without ever offering you the typical slasher thrills. The result is a film that resembles a documentary on nature and death, a film that watches without judgment as its predator moves through its environment, doing what it seems born to do.
From the very first moments, In a Violent Nature makes its intentions clear. There's no bombastic opening kill, no shrill violins, no frantic chase through the woods. Instead, we start with nature: trees swaying in the wind, birds singing, leaves rustling. It's a scene of serenity, reminding us that horror, like beauty, is only a matter of perspective. The camera then moves to a dilapidated fire tower, where a medallion hangs, waiting to be disturbed. A group of young campers arrive, unaware of the weight of their actions. One of them picks up the medallion and pockets it without a second thought. And so, serial killer Johnny awakens.
Johnny, played by Ry Barrett, is a classic slasher villain in some ways, and radically different in others. He's silent, relentless and unstoppable, but unlike Jason Voorhees or Michael Myers, he's not a character lurking in the shadows, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. He's a force of nature, a beast in his own right, advancing without hesitation or fear. The camera follows him at a measured pace, just behind his shoulder, creating the eerie effect of a third-person video game. This is a film that doesn't concern itself with the usual horror movie stylistic devices of rising tension and jerky scares. There's no question of whether Johnny will kill; the only unknowns are when and how.
In a Violent Nature features some of the most shocking and brutal murders in modern horror, yet they unfold with a kind of poetic inevitability. There's no dramatic score to punctuate the violence, no quick cuts to heighten the impact. Instead, we see death happening in real time, in all its gruesome detail. One moment, Johnny is walking through the woods; the next, he's ramming his fist into a woman's stomach, passing a chain through her mouth and twisting her body into something that barely resembles a human form. It's shocking, disgusting and strangely hypnotic. It's raw, unfiltered violence, and director Chris Nash doesn't hesitate to let us sit with it, forcing us to recognize the sheer horror of it all.
Another aspect that sets the film apart is its approach to sound. There's no traditional horror music, no synthetic sounds to tell us when to be afraid. Instead, we hear the crunch of Johnny's footsteps, the rustle of leaves, the chirp of birds - nature's indifference to the carnage unfolding in its midst. From time to time, a distant voice escapes from the campers, snatches of conversation that would usually take center stage in a horror film, but exist here only as background noise. This choice makes the film feel strangely real, as if we're witnessing something that shouldn't be seen, something we're powerless to stop.
One of the most interesting elements of In a Violent Nature is its refusal to adhere to traditional slasher structures. Typically, we follow the victims, get to know them, understand their relationships, perhaps even encourage them to survive. Here, we barely spend any time with them. Their conversations are distant, their personalities barely sketched. They exist only as obstacles in Johnny's path, and when they die, there's no catharsis, no relief - just the steady continuation of his march. The last girl in the film, Kris, is hardly more defined than the others. She doesn't triumph over Johnny, doesn't find a hidden reservoir of strength to overcome him. Instead, she simply runs, escaping by sheer luck rather than any ingenuity. And even then, director Chris Nash subverts expectations. When she is picked up by a stranger on the road, we brace ourselves for the final scare, the inevitable moment when Johnny reappears. But he doesn't. The film ends not with a shocking twist, but with a lingering fear. Kris is free, but she'll never feel safe again.
This is a film that endures, both in its pace and its impact. At times, it can seem slow, even frustrating. But this is intentional. Chris Nash isn't interested in cheap thrills. He wants you to immerse yourself in this world, to feel the weight of Johnny's every step. This is horror as existential dread, a meditation on inevitability. The murders, when they occur, are not jump scares but the natural conclusions of an unstoppable process. This is horror stripped of its most essential elements: man, nature and death.
Some will find In a Violent Nature tedious, its deliberate pace at odds with the instant gratification that modern horror often provides. But for those prepared to approach it on its own terms, this is a fascinating and deeply unsettling experience. This is not a film about fear in the traditional sense. It's about the cold, mechanical inevitability of violence, about how horror doesn't need orchestral flourishes or dramatic revelations to be effective. It simply needs time, patience and the understanding that death, like nature, is relentless.
Chris Nash has created something rare: a horror film that is both an homage to the classics and a radical reinvention. It's a film that challenges expectations, that forces you to confront the reality of violence rather than its spectacle. It is beautiful, in its own grotesque way, a film that treats horror with the reverence of a nature documentary. In a Violent Nature may not be for everyone, but for those willing to accept its meditative brutality, it's one of the most compelling horror films of recent years.
In a Violent Nature
Written and directed by Chris Nash
Produced by Peter Kuplowsky, Shannon Hanmer
Starring Ry Barrett, Andrea Pavlovic, Cameron Love, Reece Presley, Liam Leone, Charlotte Creaghan, Lea Rose Sebastianis, Sam Roulston, Alexander Oliver, Lauren Taylor
Cinematography : Pierce Derks
Edited by Alex Jacobs
Production companies : Shudder Films, Zygote Pictures
Distributed by IFC Films (United States)
Release dates : January 24, 2024 (Sundance), May 31, 2024 (United States)
Running time : 94 minutes
Viewed: December 12, 2025 (VOD)
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