Director
Trey Edward Shults
Leading Actors/Actresses
Joel Edgerton
Supporting Actors/Actresses
Christopher Abbott, Carmen Ejogo, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Riley Keough
Genre
Horror, Mystery
Language
English
Awards
N/A
Date of Release
2017
Producer
David Kaplan, Andrea Roa
Setting and Context
America - Undisclosed Location, deep in the woods. Present Day 2017 Language* English Awards* n/a Date of Release* 2017
Narrator and Point of View
POV is that of Paul and Travis
Tone and Mood
Suspenseful, Dramatic
Protagonist and Antagonist
Protagonist is Paul, Travis and Sarah. Antagonist is the outbreak and eventually Will and Kim.
Major Conflict
Will has broken into Paul and Sarah's home for supplies. He asks them for help as he has a wife and child at home. Sarah and Paul decide to let them live at their house for protection.
Climax
Travis and Andrew (Will and Kim's son) have nightmares about the outbreak. Eventually it seems that Andrew has gotten sick, but his parents won't let Paul and Sarah have a look. It comes to a standoff at gunpoint between the families, and Will, Kim and Andrew are all killed. Travis then contracts the virus and dies.
Foreshadowing
The opening shot of the Grandfather having the contagion foreshadows there is an unknown force that is coming for them.
Understatement
It is understated as to whether Andrew did contract the disease as we never see him during the final scenes.
Innovations in Filming or Lighting or Camera Techniques
N/A
Allusions
The film is an allusion to Trey Edward Shults's own relationship with his father, as he implanted the emotional experience of his relationship into the fictional story.
Paradox
Will tells Paul that he had a brother. Paradoxically, he doesn't. It's Kim who had a brother.
Parallelism
Paul and Sarah sitting at the kitchen table in the final scene parallels them sitting at the kitchen table with Travis earlier as they are deciding what to do with Will.
