Film

Aaaaaaaah!

Name: Aaaaaaaah!
Genre: Comedy, Horror, Thriller
Released: 2015
Cast: Steve Oram, Lucy Honigman, Toyah Willcox, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Tom Meeten

Drama

A pitch-black comedy that plays human office politics as literal primate territorial combat. Director Steve Oram finds horror and hilarity in the gap between how we think we behave and what we actually are—ambitious, tribal, violent. It's deadpan, nasty, brilliantly observed, and unrelentingly bleak. Cult film comfort food for people who've noticed their coworkers are apes.

TMDb rating

2.2

If you liked this

In the Loop2009

Furious, profane satire of bureaucratic power plays and masculine posturing gone feral. Like Aaaaaaaah!, it finds genuine horror in how normal people become monstrous when protecting territory and ego. Armando Iannucci's script is a masterclass in escalating absurdity rooted in painful truth.

But Relentlessly cynical; there are no good people. If you want anyone to root for, look elsewhere. The dialogue moves fast and assumes you're keeping up.

Attack the Block2011

South London kids defend their housing estate from alien invaders, but it's really about young men proving dominance and belonging. Director Joe Cornish mirrors Aaaaaaaah!'s insight: aggression and tribalism live in all of us, even the underdogs. Smart, funny, genuinely tense.

But The London accent is thick. Some find the tonal whiplash between comedy and real threat jarring. Requires sympathy for people society has already written off.

The Guard2011

A Irish policeman and an FBI agent clash in a small village while a drug cartel operates nearby. Like Aaaaaaaah!, it's fascinated by masculine pride, tribal loyalty, and the gap between what men say about themselves and what they do. Darkly funny, surprisingly moving.

But Quiet, understated pacing will feel slow if you want action. Brendan Gleeson's character is abrasive; you have to meet him halfway.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Aaaaaaaah!

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Come and See1985

Both examine how quickly civilized humans become beasts when tribal survival is at stake. Roth removes the comedy; Oram keeps it, making the revelation more insidious.

A Soviet boy joins a partisan militia during WWII. Eli Roth called it the most brutal film ever made. It's Aaaaaaaah! inverted: the comedy stripped away, the same tribal blood-lust and masculine posturing shown as species-level horror without a joke to soften it. Transcendent and devastatingly serious.

But Genocidal atrocity depicted unflinchingly. Real animal deaths. If Aaaaaaaah!'s darkness made you uneasy, this will destroy you. Not recommended as entertainment—as a reckoning.

Noroi: The Curse2005

Japanese found-footage horror that plays tribalism and group psychology against supernatural dread. Builds a community that isolates and turns on itself. Shares Aaaaaaaah!'s conviction that the real monster is how we treat each other.

But Slow-burn; requires patience. Subtitled. Long stretches of mundane investigation before anything happens. The ending is deliberately unsatisfying.

Tucker and Dale vs. Evil2010

Subverts the horror movie formula by making the 'monsters' sympathetic and the beautiful kids the problem. Tonally nimble, genuinely clever about prejudice and assumption. The same energy of flipping perspective on who the real beasts are.

But Lean on plot; relies on a single joke executed multiple times. Loses momentum in the second act. Very broad in places.

A Dark Song2016

A woman and an occultist perform a ritual in an isolated house over weeks. Sounds mystical; it's about grief, guilt, and two broken people trapped together. Drenched in dread and unease. Shares Aaaaaaaah!'s fascination with what emerges when people are cornered.

But Glacially paced; almost no plot momentum. Bleak without relief. If you want narrative payoff or spectacle, this will frustrate you.

Cheap Thrills2013

Two broke men are offered money to degrade themselves for a couple's entertainment. Escalates from darkly funny to genuinely horrifying. A clinical study of how circumstance and peer pressure strip away morality. Aaaaaaaah! adjacent in its contempt for civilization's thin veneer.

But Actively unpleasant. Depicts sexual humiliation and bodily harm. The humor evaporates; you're left watching people debase themselves for cash.

Under the Silver Lake2018

A man chases conspiracy through LA; it becomes a fever dream about masculine fixation, obsession, and tribal mythology. Visually rich and genuinely unhinged. Shares Aaaaaaaah!'s anthropological interest in how men organize themselves around dominance and nonsense.

But Bewilderingly plotless; the mystery goes nowhere and never resolves. Three hours long and indulgent. You will leave confused and possibly annoyed.

Carnivàle2003

Both build entire worlds around carnival/community as theater for dominance, hierarchy, and the dark rituals we perform to belong.

A Depression-era traveling carnival and a small-town preacher. Mythic, grotesque, full of corrupted Americana. It's Aaaaaaaah! given high production and supernatural weight—the same sense that civilization is a costume we wear badly, that tribes form and devour each other across any gathering.

But Cancelled on a cliffhanger after two seasons. Labyrinthine plot; impossible to follow unless you're taking notes. Slow and difficult; the payoff never comes.