Movie · 2024 · Horror, Mystery · 1h 38m · R · English
Curator score: 5.1/10 (271K ratings)
Every murder lives on.
Overview
After the brutal murder of her twin sister, Darcy goes after those responsible by using haunted items as her tools for revenge.
Ratings
Curator score: 5.1/10
IMDb: 6.7/10
Letterboxd: 3.38/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 96%
Metacritic: 78
TMDB: 6.7/10
Director
Damian McCarthy
Production
Keeper Pictures, Nowhere, Shudder
Cast
Carolyn Bracken, Gwilym Lee, Steve Wall, Joe Rooney, Tadhg Murphy, Caroline Menton, Jonathan French, Ivan de Wergifosse, Shane Whisker, Josuha Campbell, Austin Lawlor, Peter McCarthy, Fiach McHugh, Patrick Mullins, Jim O'Donnell, Inma Pavon, Leticia Lopez Ramos, Chris Mudrack, Eileen McCarthy, Pete McCarthy
Where to watch
Hulu, AMC+, Philo, Shudder
Curator Review
Verdict
A compact, eerie revenge-horror built on atmosphere, dread, and a handful of genuinely unsettling images. It plays like a modern ghost story with old-school mechanics: haunted objects, buried secrets, and a slow squeeze of tension that pays off in nasty, memorable ways.
Best for
viewers who like atmospheric supernatural horror
fans of contained, single-location dread
people who enjoy revenge stories with occult elements
audiences looking for creepy practical effects and visual invention
viewers who prefer tension over gore
Skip if
you want fast-paced, joke-heavy horror
you dislike slow-burn setups
you need a highly explained mythology
you prefer grounded crime thrillers over supernatural stories
Overview
Oddity is the kind of horror film that trusts mood more than noise. It opens with a sharp, unsettling hook and then keeps tightening the screws through haunted objects, ominous spaces, and a sense that every room contains a threat just out of view. The film’s pleasures are in its texture: the house layout, the tactile props, the eerie stillness before the shocks land.
Worth noting
What makes it work is how confidently it balances grief and vengeance with supernatural unease. It feels old-fashioned in the best way, like a grim little ghost tale told with modern precision. The scares are effective because the movie understands anticipation; it keeps you leaning forward, waiting for the wrong thing to move.
Bottom line
It may not be for viewers who want constant escalation or a densely plotted mythology, but if you respond to dread, atmosphere, and a few wonderfully creepy images, it’s an easy recommendation. This is a lean, well-made chiller that knows exactly what kind of nightmare it wants to be.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Mike Flanagan · 4234 likes
Absolutely excellent. Damian Mc Carthy's engrossing, terrifying followup to his atmospheric and chilling CAVEAT is a masterclass in dread, atmosphere, and tension. An arresting opening sequence involving a woman answering the door to an unsettling stranger blossoms into a tale of supernatural revenge, mournful spirits, and buried secrets.
I loved this. One of the best of the year, for sure, and confirmation that Mc Carthy is the real deal. This one gets under the skin.
ndc32002 (4★) · 2641 likes
wish i had a vengeful psychic golem wielding twin 😔
Robyn (4.5★) · 2306 likes
Well I'd like to use that wooden man's head as a bowling ball :-)
SilentDawn (5★) · 2202 likes
95
Often when I watch modern horror films, I inadvertently take on the tone of the kid at the dig site from the beginning of Jurassic Park: "That doesn't look very scary." It's difficult to shake the genre's visual hallmarks and narrative tendencies and morph them into something novel for a seasoned audience. There's no type of movie that I love more than a good old fashioned scary movie, so chasing the high of an great chiller typically results in… more
ChrisStuckmann · 2038 likes
Oddity actually scared me. But what does that mean nowadays? For me, it’s not about being jolted by sound design. It’s about a feeling of dread, about knowing something bad is going to happen, and that it feels inescapable. Hitchcock loved referencing the “bomb under the table.” The idea that the audience is made aware of something that the characters cannot see, and we watch, as the excruciating minutes tick away, wondering when they’ll realize they’re in danger. In Oddity, Damian… more Oddity actually scared me. But what does that mean nowadays? For me, it’s not about being jolted by sound design. It’s about a feeling of dread, about knowing something bad is going to happen, and that it feels inescapable. Hitchcock loved referencing the “bomb under the table.” The idea that the audience is made aware of something that the characters cannot see, and we watch, as the excruciating minutes tick away, wondering when they’ll realize they’re in danger. In Oddity, Damian… more