Babak Anvari's feature debut Under the Shadow has been earning rave reviews as it tore through the festival circuit this year. The trailer for the horror flick is here and you can watch it below.
In Under the Shadow Shideh is a stay at home mom looking after her daughter Dorsa. Her husband is sent to the front lines during the Iran Irag War in 1988. That is when the trouble begins.
Shideh finds herself slowly drawn into the ensuing turmoil, struggling to cling onto what is real and what is not. Searching for answers, she learns from a superstitious neighbor that the cursed missile might have brought with it Djinn – malevolent Middle-Eastern spirits that travel on the wind. Convinced that a supernatural force within the building is attempting to possess Dorsa, Shideh has no choice but to confront these forces if she is to save her daughter and herself.
The Iranian horror flick has been earning praise not only for its scares but also for the performance from his lead Narges Rashidi, who plays the beliguered mother Shideh. Pierce Conran caught the film on the festival circuit this summer and had this to say:
Director Babak Anvari, who makes his feature debut with this Sundance-premiered film, weans scares and ideas a plenty throughout the film, yet perhaps his single greatest tool is actress Narges Rashidi. Playing the strong-willed and unwilling housewife, Rashidi conveys a potent feeling of perseverance mingled with helplessness.
While the scares in the film are not necessarily new, and many will compare the setup to recent Australian horror hit The Babadook, Under the Shadow has a handful of genuine jump-out-of-your-skin moments that will be hard to shake off. Also, in a rare feat for a jump scare horror, Anvari's film nails the landing, with a strong message and a quick exit.