Leviticus (Australia)

There aren't many horror or supernatural films out there that actually do the gay thing well, most of the older ones lean pretty campy or just come off as trash. This one though actually pulls off something smart, it takes a real emotional queer relationship and wraps it around a monster concept that genuinely works, and it does it with this creepy quality that sticks with you. If horror's your thing, you're going to eat this up. I'm not really into horror as a genre myself but I still ended up liking this one a lot, probably helped by the fact that it skips those jump scare moments that usually get under my skin with this kind of movie.

So Naim's just moved into this small, religious town in Australia, and he starts spending time with a guy named Ryan, and pretty quick the two of them realize they're into each other, which leads to some kissing and more. Naim's feeling good about it too, thinking he's finally not going to be the outsider anymore, but then he catches Ryan getting close with another classmate named Hunter, and jealousy takes over, so he goes and rats them out to their pastor. What comes next is way more than he bargained for. The pastor puts them through a full blown exorcism, basically dressed up conversion therapy, and everything changes after that. From where Naim's standing, and from what the audience sees, it looks like Hunter and Ryan are each talking to something that isn't there. Naim digs deeper and ends up witnessing this invisible force literally take control of both of them, and that same force ends up killing Hunter. Once Naim's mom finds out he's been hanging around Ryan, she turns on him too and drags him to that same exorcist. As Naim starts going through his own version of this nightmare with the shapeshifting spirit, it comes out that the thing takes on the form of whoever the person wants most. Realizing they're both dealing with the same curse, Naim and Ryan team up to try and find a way out of it. The catch is the spirit only shows up when they're alone, so there's no real way to tell which one of them is actually real in the moment. They try to stay close through it, but once Ryan figures out Naim's the reason this whole mess started in the first place, they end up pulling apart. Naim's spiraling at this point. Eventually he works out that fire is what can actually stop the spirit, so he sets Ryan, or really the spirit wearing Ryan's shape, on fire, and the two of them, separately but still connected, end up leaving the town behind for good.

This isn't only about religious persecution, it's also about first love, figuring out your own sexuality, and how scary it is to let someone actually see who you really are. Even if the film's technically kind of rough around the edges, there's a lot going on underneath it. The title's not random either, it's a nod to the biblical book that's been used for ages to justify going after gay people. And because the spirit always shows up looking like someone you love and want, the whole film keeps you questioning what's real and what's not. It uses the horror angle to dig into intolerance, but at its core it's really about two kids who won't give up who they are, even knowing they'll pay for it. There's this one scene that stuck with me where Naim's mom tells him it's good that he's scared, that fear is something they need, and that line kind of sums up what the whole movie's getting at. The real horror here isn't coming from some supernatural thing, it's coming from how far people will go, even against their own kids, just to chase out whatever "demons" they think are inside them, all because two boys liked each other.

Every actor in this brings it, especially the two leads, they both feel completely believable in the roles. Naim's actor is solid, but honestly Ryan's the one who steals it, he plays wounded, confused, and angry in a way that comes through mostly in his face and body language, which is impressive especially since he's basically playing two versions of the same character. My one gripe is I wanted more on what Naim's relationship with his mom actually looked like before all this, that would've added a lot. The ending might not land for everyone and some might call it a bit too simple, but I don't think there's a wrong answer there, the director's message comes through clearly and it works. At the end of the day this one lands both as a genuinely tense psychological horror and as a pointed piece of social commentary, and Leviticus earns its spot as a standout in queer horror right now. (7/10)