Director Alex Garland is certainly no stranger when it comes to creating horror movies that purposely perplex the cerebral cortexes of the audience, as seen in films like Ex Machina (2014) and Annihilation (2018). However, Garland’s latest horror experience Men looks to take a more “aggressive” approach in terms of terrifying eagle-eyed viewers. The upcoming film stars Jessie Buckley as Harper, a woman on vacation in the English countryside who encounters several men who she finds disturbing — including one that appears to be “aggressively” stalking her.
While speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Garland pointed out that Men is a “gut-level” film that directly impacts the viewer, much like Annihilation did, while simultaneously mentioning that Ex Machina is completely different in that regard.
In my mind, a film like Men is connected to a film like Annihilation. They’re very much about how you’re feeling about something. Men is a gut-level film. I’m proud of Ex Machina, I really love it, but it’s an intellectual film. Men is not, I think. When I say it’s a slightly aggressive film, that’s what I mean: It’s coming at the viewer. It’s a gentle movie sometimes, there’s lots of silly humor in there, but it’s also a bit delinquent.
If the official trailer is of any indication, then fans of the supernatural horror sub-genre are in for a wild journey that promises unsettling occurrences and impressive performances from both Buckley and Rory Kinnear — who portrays multiple characters in the movie.
Men is scheduled to be released on May 20.