‘Vicious’ Review: Bryan Bertino’s Latest Film Is A Mean Chamberpiece [Fantastic Fest 2025]
Bryan Bertino is a master of American nihilism, films that are so steeped in a sense of despair that they settle into your bones. From his debut feature, The Strangers, to his 2020 nightmare, The Dark and the Wicked, Bertino has illustrated his understanding of primordial fear. And he continues to channel that understanding in his latest feature, Vicious, which had its world premiere at the 2025 Fantastic Fest. While not as sharp-toothed as some of his previous works, the film packs the classic Bertino punch, which is bolstered by an incredible performance by Dakota Fanning.
Fanning plays Polly, a burnt-out 32-year-old struggling to figure out where she fits in the world. Holed up in the gorgeous house she rents from her sister as snow falls from the sky, she pours herself a glass of wine, lights a cigarette, and slowly starts preparing for an important job interview. Then, out of the dark, cold night, appears an older woman (Kathryn Hunter) who happens to knock on Polly’s door.
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At first, she seems unassuming, a confused old lady who got lost in the snow. But she quickly reveals more sinister intentions: to pass on a black box. She utters the harrowing phrase, “I’m going to start now”, and begins to explain that she is passing on this box’s curse to Polly. Now, Polly must feed the box something she hates, something she needs, and something she loves. If she doesn’t, all hell breaks loose.
Polly quickly learns what hell looks like, and it is full of unimaginable death. The more she resists the box’s demands, the more blood is spilt to punish her. Locked in her house, Polly experiences a supernatural home invasion of sorts, as whatever forces that govern the box bully her over the phone and through the TV into hurting herself (and others). It’s a nonstop nightmare contained (mostly) in one house that plays out like a bloody stage drama all about the hells of just trying to exist in your 30s during this particular moment in time.
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Fanning really proves her range and ability as an actor with Vicious, as she is put through the mental, emotional, and physical wringer while also carrying the entire film on her shoulders. She delivers a powerhouse performance that you can feel in the pit of your stomach. Fanning plays Polly perfectly: as a normal woman trying to escape the ever-creeping depression and anxiety that permeates her every waking moment. She isn’t special. She’s just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
If that theme feels familiar, it’s because Vicious, for better or worse, functions as an amalgamation of Bertino’s work, to the point that it almost feels like a copy-and-paste rather than a fully original story. This doesn’t necessarily distract from the film’s effectiveness, but fans of Bertino will quickly recognize familiar elements and themes, especially when it feels like Kathryn Hunter practically utters the lines, “Because you were home.”
As a burnt-out 32-year-old, Vicious hits particularly hard as Bertino and Fanning craft a hellish representation of clawing your way through adulthood in the 21st century. While elements feel repetitive from Bertino’s previous filmography, the director still packs a gnarly punch with his tale about millennial ennui and the struggles of just trying to carry on in a careless world. His mean streak is still alive and well, which is perfect for 2025, a year that just gets meaner by the day.
Vicious comes to Paramount+ on October 10, 2025.
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Vicious
Summary
While not as sharp-toothed as some of his previous works, ‘Vicious’ packs the classic Bertino punch, which is bolstered by an incredible performance by Dakota Fanning.
Categorized: Reviews