Film

The Trap

Name: The Trap
Genre: Comedy, Horror
Released: 2015
Cast: Alexander Kirk, Felicity Wren, James Wren, Sean Garratt, David Haydn

Other titles called The Trap: the 1966 film, the 2007 film, the 2023 film.

Horror comedy

A comedy-horror film about rival treasure hunters converging on an abandoned Victorian bathhouse. It's scrappy and unpretentious, mixing jump scares with comedic timing for an audience that enjoys low-budget genre films that don't take themselves seriously and aren't afraid to be weird or uneven.

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy scrappy, low-budget scares that keep undercutting themselves with bickering, greedy strangers stuck together in one crumbling Victorian ruin.

Skip it if you need dread played straight, because the laughs arrive often enough to puncture any tension and the scares rarely linger once the jokes start.

What it asks of you: Ninety minutes, brisk and loud, with the mood flipping between cackling and creeping; it wants you to keep up with a crowd of characters rather than settle into slow dread.

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

If you liked this

Tucker and Dale vs. Evil2010

A film that proves horror-comedy works brilliantly when you flip genre expectations on their head. Deeply funny and genuinely tense, with characters you actually root for throughout.

But It leans hard on slapstick and relies on you finding gore funny. If horror is meant to unsettle you, this deliberately undercuts that.

What We Do in the Shadows2014

A mockumentary about vampire flatmates in Wellington that finds comedy in mundane tension and absurdist detail. Mockery and affection for its characters exist simultaneously, which is remarkably hard to pull off.

But The humour is dry to the point of dryness. Some scenes milk single jokes for an uncomfortably long time, and it's not for anyone wanting obvious punchlines.

Evil Dead II1987

Bruce Campbell becoming increasingly unhinged as cabins and forests conspire against him. It's cartoonish horror that understands the comedy lives in the performance, not the editing or setup.

But It's dated in look and feel, and the practical effects can read as cheesy rather than charming depending on your tolerance for '80s filmmaking.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Trap

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

The Descent2005

Both pit mismatched groups of civilians in an enclosed, abandoned space against something they didn't expect. The difference: The Descent treats its premise with complete seriousness, showing what happens when treasure-hunting comedy stops being funny.

A caving expedition goes wrong and becomes claustrophobic survival horror. It builds dread through geography and desperation rather than jump scares, making the underground setting itself monstrous. The group dynamic feels real and fractures believably under pressure.

But It's genuinely bleak and suffocating. The horror isn't comic relief; it's designed to make your chest tight. If you watch films to feel relaxed, this isn't it.

Shaun of the Dead2004

Zombie horror that cares about its characters' actual relationships and treats the genre as a backdrop for something more human. Funny, smart, and surprisingly touching without ever feeling saccharine.

But If you want pure horror or pure comedy, this sits in the middle and might feel compromised to purists of either camp.

Tremors1990

Underground monsters threatening a small Nevada town, played with B-movie earnestness and genuine creature-design creativity. It knows exactly what it is and commits fully, which is half the charm.

But The tone is deliberately lightweight and the dialogue can feel clunky. If you want contemporary filmmaking sensibilities, this was made in another era.

The Cabin in the Woods2012

A horror film that deconstructs horror itself, aware of every trope it deploys. It's clever without being smug, and the final act shifts into something genuinely unpredictable and wildly entertaining.

But Its meta-awareness might feel exhausting if you're tired of films about films. Some will find it arch rather than funny.

Fright Night1985

A horror-comedy about a teenager realizing his new neighbour is a vampire, and having to recruit a washed-up horror-TV personality to help. It balances genuine scares with comedic characters and feels lived-in.

But It's anchored in '80s teen-movie tropes that don't always hold up well, and the pacing can feel uneven by modern standards.

Braindead1992

Peter Jackson's splatter-comedy masterpiece about a man and his zombie mother, played completely straight. It goes further than you'd expect and finds tremendous comedy in escalating absurdity and practical effects.

But It's gratuitously gory and treats gore as comedy. If blood and body horror aren't your idea of fun, this will feel gratuitous rather than funny.

Army of Darkness1992

Bruce Campbell in a medieval fantasy, fighting deadites with a chainsaw and a boomstick. It's silly, quotable, and commits entirely to its own ridiculousness without winking at the camera too much.

But The plot is essentially nonexistent and some effects look rough even for the early '90s. It's carried entirely by Campbell's charisma, which isn't a guarantee for everyone.

Severance2022

Both explore groups arriving at a place seeking something and finding themselves trapped by institutional architecture—one a bathhouse, one a corporate building. Where The Trap might find dark comedy in that entrapment, Severance finds existential dread.

A series about corporate dread where employees undergo a procedure that separates their work memories from their personal ones. It's structured like a mystery-box thriller but moves with deliberate, eerie restraint. Every detail matters and the horror is systemic, not immediate.

But It has the pacing of a slow-burn prestige drama, not a romp. Answers come slowly and the tone is fundamentally unsettling rather than entertaining. Some will find it frustratingly cerebral.

The Wailing2016

Both films use genre mashups to explore what happens when different groups with different motives occupy the same space. The Wailing achieves mystery through restraint and refusal; it's what happens when ambiguity becomes the point rather than a side effect.

A South Korean film about a village gripped by sickness and suspicion, where a local policeman investigates a mysterious stranger. It's deliberately ambiguous, layering genre—crime procedural, horror, family drama—without settling into any one of them. Genuinely disorienting and utterly compelling.

But It's two and a half hours long, subtitled, and refuses to give you the answers you're looking for. It demands active engagement and will frustrate anyone wanting clear resolution.