Review: The nightmare of endless existential horror
The Road That Never Ends: How One Car Trip Unlocked Existential Horror
Every great story begins with a journey, but sometimes, the destination is less important than the relentless, inescapable path you find yourself on. Writer and director Alexander Ullom has delivered a cinematic masterpiece that redefines the horror genre by swapping blood and gore for pure, suffocating psychological dread: It Ends. This film isn’t just a spooky ride; it’s a stark, witty examination of the anxieties that haunt us when we realize the road ahead never ends.
The film kicks off with four recent college graduates—James, Day, Fisher, and Tyler—setting out on what should be a simple road trip. But their adventure quickly devolves into something far more unsettling. As they venture down an isolated backroad through a dense forest, the mundane chatter turns to existential debates, forcing them to confront not external threats, but the cracks forming within their own relationships. They discover an inescapable trap: they are stuck, with no exits and no way forward, on a seemingly endless stretch of road.
The setting itself becomes the primary antagonist. Trapped inside the car, cut off from the world by impenetrable trees, the friends face a reality where physical needs—hunger, thirst—are irrelevant, yet emotional and mental distress intensifies. Without cell service, the only reality left is the rapidly fraying bonds between them. What began as a shared afternoon chat evolves into a chilling commentary on isolation, echoing the feeling of being stuck in a metaphorical prison.
Ullom masterfully utilizes this static environment to explore profound themes. It Ends operates less like a traditional horror film and more like a philosophical drama. It uses the concept of endless entrapment, reminiscent of classic thought experiments like The Twilight Zone and Black Mirror, to ask uncomfortable questions about adult life. Are they dead? Are they being punished? Or is the true terror simply realizing that their reality has dissolved into an infinite, inescapable loop?
The film excels in its character development. By focusing on the chemistry between the four friends, the story manages to normalize the supernatural situation while amplifying the personal stakes. Each character brings a unique perspective—from the questioning existential dread of James to the grounded worry of Tyler—allowing the audience to experience the unfolding nightmare through their shifting dynamics. The tension isn’t built on jump scares; it’s built on the slow, agonizing realization that the deepest monsters are often the ones we carry within us.
Through tight cinematography and a subtle, disquieting score, the film shifts the focus entirely away from monsters and toward the human condition. It becomes a powerful allegory for the challenges of adulthood and the feeling of worldwide isolation we experience in the digital age, where connection is often replaced by digital silence. It Ends uses the isolation of the road trip to reflect the broader generational divide and the feeling that we are increasingly alone, tethered to our screens but deeply disconnected from one another.
Ultimately, while It Ends delivers a chilling experience, it is a satisfying conclusion. It proves that true horror often resides not in what lurks in the shadows, but in the inescapable reality of our own minds. It is a meticulously crafted indie drama that uses the trope of the road trip to deliver a powerful message: sometimes, the scariest journey is the one we take into ourselves.
It Ends opens in theaters on August 21.
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