The return of cosmic horror. An itch in the brain. Prior injects the genre with a much needed dose of scope and existentialism. What starts as part creepypasta slasher and investigative procedural, takes a wild turn into a conspiracy occult movie about an ancient terror beyond comprehension, understanding or control that is somehow directed with a confident ease on top of all of its narrative ambition. Some of the imagery Prior employs here is as striking and unsettling as your likely to find in modern horror. One sequence in the middle here especially is among the best I’ve seen from the genre in years, making incredible use of darkness and movement. I can’t forget about James Badge Dale either. What a great lead performance, balancing all the terror, confusion and pitch black humor of the narrative about as well as any actor could.