2006 / 96m - UK
Horror, Comedy
3.5*/5.0*
Severance poster

Watches

October 02, 2006

4.0*/5.0*

March 05, 2024

3.5*/5.0*

Cute and funny, but not quite as good as I remembered it to be. Smith is a gifted horror director and this little horror/comedy balances both genres quite nicely, but almost two decades later there's not enough to set it apart from a slew of similar outings. It's prime filler for genre fans, but it lacks that little extra.

The personnel of an arms company are traveling through Europe, as a thank you they're getting a weekend off in a luxury retreat. The retreat turns out to be a dump and the team is forced to make the best of it. What they don't know is that the woods are swarming with angry victims of their employer.

Smith has a jolly sense of humor, with some absurdities thrown in (the bear is pretty memorable), and the horror is quite graphic and to the point, but the rest of the film is a little too flimsy to leave a strong impression. The 00s were a good era for horror and Severance doesn't disappoint, but a masterpiece it is not.