Film

Await Further Instructions

Name: Await Further Instructions
Genre: Horror
Released: 2018
Cast: David Bradley, Abigail Cruttenden, Holly Weston, Sam Gittins, Grant Masters

A trapped-house nightmare that turns family dysfunction into body horror. On Christmas morning, a mysterious black substance seals a house shut; the TV offers only ominous commands. Claustrophobic, nasty, and genuinely unsettling—it's less interested in jump scares than in watching people unravel under pressure and control.

TMDb rating

2.7

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like domestic horror where the strained family dynamics are as sharp as the dread outside, and a slow-building unease comes with a streak of dark humour.

Skip it if the squabbling between relatives takes up much of the running time, so if you want scares arriving quickly or a tidy explanation, this may test your patience.

What it asks of you: Ninety-one minutes that stay mostly indoors, with patient build-up and a lot of watching people wait; it rewards attention to small details in the room.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

A Quiet Place2018

Shared DNA: an external threat forces a family into desperate togetherness, and sound becomes a weapon. Taut, inventive, and makes you hold your breath—a masterclass in restraint and dread.

But The premise is simpler and the execution more polished, which can feel safer. Some find the creature design underwhelming once revealed.

Martyrs2008

French extremist horror that doesn't flinch from suffering or moral collapse. Like Await Further Instructions, it asks what people become when every constraint is removed—uncompromising and genuinely difficult.

But Graphic violence and torture. This is nihilistic and punishing. Not entertainment in any traditional sense; it's an ordeal you endure.

The Rental2020

Slow-burn dread about paranoia and surveillance eating a relationship alive. The horror isn't a monster—it's distrust and the feeling that you're being watched by unseen forces.

But Meandering first half. Spends more time on character friction than scares, which some find tedious before things darken.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Await Further Instructions

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Under the Skin2014

Both films weaponize the mundane. Await Further Instructions uses the family home and Christmas; Under the Skin uses Glasgow streets and small talk. Both ask: what if safety was an illusion?

Scarlett Johansson as an alien predator moving through mundane Glasgow, luring men. Minimal dialogue, maximum dread—it's body horror as cosmic indifference, with humanity as the hunted. Hypnotic and genuinely alien in tone.

But Glacial pacing and deliberately opaque. No plot to grip, no character arc to follow—you're watching texture and unease accumulate. Demands patience.

The Wailing2016

A small community descends into blame and violence when illness strikes, with mounting uncertainty about who or what is responsible. Baroque and brilliant—it's about how groups collapse under pressure.

But Nearly three hours and deliberately obscure. The narrative tangles intentionally, and there's no clean answer—frustrating if you want clarity.

Goodnight Mommy2015

Austrian folk-horror about a mother who returns home post-surgery, changed in unsettling ways. Claustrophobic family pressure and the uncertainty of who deserves trust—it crawls under your skin.

But Extremely bleak. A major twist recontextualizes everything, and the final act is genuinely upsetting rather than cathartic.

The Invisible Man2020

Remake that's actually a paranoid thriller about control and gaslighting. A woman is trapped by an invisible threat while no one believes her—powerlessness as the real horror.

But Heavy-handed social commentary. Some scenes feel didactic, and the pacing softens in the middle act.

It Comes at Night2017

Paranoia and isolation as a plague spreads. Families barricade themselves indoors; trust evaporates; the real threat becomes ambiguous. Slow-burn psychological horror that lingers.

But Very little happens. If you want action or answers, you'll leave frustrated. The ending offers no relief.

Vivarium2019

A couple becomes trapped in an endless suburban maze—a stylish, Kafkaesque trap about agency and entrapment. Visually gorgeous and architecturally cruel.

But Abstract and deliberately paced. If you need plot momentum or emotional catharsis, this withholds both.

The Platform2019

Spanish sci-fi horror set in a vertical prison where food descends through levels. A claustrophobic pressure-cooker about class and survival that builds to something genuinely grotesque.

But Some sequences are deliberately disgusting. The philosophical beating-you-over-the-head approach isn't subtle.

Come True2020

Both trap protagonists in systems that claim to protect them. Both use isolation to strip away sanity. Await Further Instructions does this through domestic control; Come True through medical/institutional authority.

A homeless teen volunteers for a sleep study; reality begins to distort through stunning, unsettling visuals. Body horror and psychological breakdown rendered as fractured, psychedelic spectacle—gorgeous and upsetting.

But Experimental structure; the narrative is dreamlike and resists interpretation. Heavy on mood, light on plot. Feels more like a visual poem than a story.

Ghostwatch1992

Both hinge on what the television tells you to do. Await Further Instructions has the TV as oppressor; Ghostwatch has the TV as the frame through which horror arrives. Both ask: what if the broadcast isn't safe?

A fake BBC documentary about a haunted house that aired live on television and caused genuine panic. Shot as found-footage before that was a genre—it's formally inventive and builds dread through the format itself rather than scares.

But Dated and understated. No gore, no monsters—it's slow television, which modern horror fans often dismiss. Requires faith in atmosphere over spectacle.