‘Talk to the dead. Pay the price.’
Baghead is a 2023 horror film about a young woman who inherits a run-down pub and discovers a dark secret within its basement: a shape-shifting creature that will let you speak to lost loved ones, but not without consequence.
Directed by Alberto Corredor, making his feature directorial debut, from a screenplay written by Christina Pamies and Bryce McGuire; based on the 2017 short film of the same name written by Lorcan Reilly. Produced by Alex Heineman and Andrew Rona.
The Picture Company-Vertigo Entertainment production stars Freya Allan, Ruby Barker, Ned Dennehy, Peter Mullan, Jeremy Irvine, Saffron Burrows and Svenja Jung.
Plot:
Following the death of her estranged father (Peter Mullan), Iris (Freya Allan) learns she has inherited a run-down, centuries-old pub. She travels to Berlin to identify her father’s body and meet with The Solicitor (Ned Dennehy) to discuss the estate.
Little does she know, when the deed is signed she will become inextricably tied to an unspeakable entity that resides in the pub’s basement – Baghead – a shape-shifting creature that can transform into the dead. Two thousand in cash for two minutes with the creature is all it takes for desperate loved ones to ease their grief.
Neil (Jeremy Irvine), who has lost his wife, is Iris’ first customer. Like her father, Iris is tempted to exploit the creature’s powers and help desperate people for a price. But she soon discovers breaking the two-minute rule can have terrifying consequences. Together with her best friend Katie (Ruby Barker), Iris must battle to keep control of Baghead and figure out how to destroy her, before she destroys them…
Release:
Baghead was available on Shudder from April 5, 2024, onwards.
Reviews:
“Baghead is a mixed film variant of the 2017 horror short film of the same name. Albert Corredor doesn’t really manage to justify the expansion of the story narratively or aesthetically and also gets lost in common clichés of the genre that make Baghead predictable.” 5 out of 10, Film Rezensionen [translated from German]
“Baghead is probably the only horror film in which an (admittedly well-designed) witch eats a smartphone. But otherwise there’s hardly anything on offer here: the protagonists are made of holey cardboard, the soundtrack is penetrating, the “horror” consists primarily of deafening jump scares – and what’s more, almost all of the action takes place in the same dull studio setting.” ★½ Filmstarts [translated from German]
“Neil’s first encounter with Baghead contains an amusing and insightful twist on the subject of his fear of women, but otherwise this film is a lumbering mess of cliched jump scares, and people’s eyes going demonically black and speaking with Daleky voices at scary moments.” The Guardian
” …the film ultimately delivers everything that it promised to this blockbuster audience from the start: a fast-paced and entertaining ghost train ride without any great philosophical pretensions. Precisely because of its formulaic nature, Baghead is also a solidly staged and reliable horror film – nothing more and nothing less.” ★★½ Kino Zeit
“The film is solid . That’s the best thing you can say about him. Neither particularly bad, nor particularly good, it just exists, and it’s passably good for killing a good 90 minutes. But do you have to do that in the cinema? This is also the kind of film that makes you wonder why it’s even coming to the cinema.” ★★★ Kinofans [translated from German]
“For about two-thirds of its narrative, Baghead is a gripping existential horror movie that confronts the sort of questions that preoccupy both believer and agnostic in equal measure. It’s disappointing then to see it concede to mainstream genre expectations with a hokey final act that rushes to a clichéd climax…” 3.5 out of 5, The Movie Waffler
“Like so many screen adaptations of successful short films, Alberto Corredor’s uneven spooky show lacks the narrative and psychological substance for a film. The ritual necromancy is repeated under almost identical conditions. While the generic horror atmosphere wears off, the plot stagnates, with numerous loose ends making the story extensions seem even more confused and arbitrary.” 5 out of 10, Moviebreak
For YouTube reviews, the trailer and more movie info please visit page 2
MOVIES & MANIA provides previews, our own film reviews and ratings, plus links to other online reviews from a wide variety of trusted sources in one handy web location. This is a genuinely independent website and we rely solely on the minor income generated by internet ads to pay for web costs and cover yet more movies. Please support us by not blocking ads. Thank you. As an Amazon Associate, we earn a very tiny amount from any qualifying purchases.