L’Inhumain

This is an effective method that I once heard Bob Goldthwait credit to Stephen King for making you care about characters before throwing them in the shredder. Brennan takes it further by introducing additional dramatic developments once all the monsters come out. This infuses the story with a depth that most horror movies don’t achieve. As a result, the creatures are scary as hell and finish off even more frightening, thanks to his tweaks to the secret formula.

As long as rap has been around there have been rappers who are also great actors. Thanks to his performance in L’Inhumain, we can add Indigenous French-language rapper Samian to that list. I completely bought him as a brain surgeon. We need more films with indigenous high-earning professionals in them, as Natives’ onscreen presence is too often limited to cops or mystics. Samian perfectly sets up the outer image Dr. Cote presents to the world, then slowly allows it to hairline crack and shatter as the drugs and infidelity ruin his family and work life. You can see the surprise on his face when his emotional strength is overwhelmed by toxic appetites, and he starts losing control. His humility when he reluctantly returns to the reservation is genuine and well-earned. And when it’s Wendigo time, Samian sells the dread by looking truly frightened.

“…deserves as wide an audience as possible.”

Beaudet’s powerful acting work is crucial here, as it is Julie’s devastation that shows the level of intimate violence Mathieu is inflicting. Roux-Cote is excellent in her key role as the other woman, presenting many facets to a character that, in lesser hands, wouldn’t be so dimensional. Vigneault is fantastic as Mathieu’s mother, having to grieve for her husband while dealing with how lost her grown son is now.

With L’Inhumain, Brennan has crafted a rich work of horror that deserves as wide an audience as possible. This old, tired world needs more fresh angles on horror like this. This spirit is hungry for more.