“When evil is hidden”
Punctuation: * * *
Director: Demián Rugna
Terror
Premiere: 19.01.24
When Evil Stalks marks one of the season’s most talked-about horror experiences, affirming that Argentinian filmmaker Demián Rugna has a deft hand with fear. This is not Rugna’s debut, but his prior work Terrified from 2017 is widely cited by fans of the genre for two reasons. First, its knack for crafting a domestic, almost intimate brand of terror that nevertheless feels universal, modeled by a shrewd translation of imported ideas into a distinctly local vocabulary. Second, Rugna’s signature ability to compress dread into meticulously paced scenes, delivering shocks that land with precision and linger long after a single frame ends.
Rugna learns to steer expectations, to tilt uncertainty just enough to keep viewers uneasy, and to stretch the tension until the moment it snaps. When Evil Stalks dives into demonic possessions within a rural stretch of Argentina, it does so with a built world of its own. The setting breathes on its own terms, and the fear it generates feels credible because it is rooted in recognizable landscapes and human frailty. Yet the film remains provocatively discordant on a narrative level. The concept and atmosphere align with a broader fascination in contemporary horror: how unseen forces disrupt ordinary life and reveal the fragility of the everyday.
In its execution, the film assembles a sequence of unsettling tableaux that rely as much on suggestion as on spectacle. Rugna crafts each scene with an economy that makes the most out of quiet, almost mundane moments that suddenly tilt toward the supernatural. The scares arrive through carefully arranged realizations rather than loud shocks, inviting viewers to read the room, feel the weight of the surroundings, and notice the subtle signs that something has shifted beneath the surface. The result is a mood piece as much as it is a work of fright, a story about possession that uses environment, sound design, and actor intent to evoke a sense of intrusion into the ordinary world.
What makes When Evil Stalks stand out is its insistence on atmosphere over obvious resolution. The film succeeds in creating a space where fear grows from everyday occurrences, leaving room for interpretation while maintaining a palpable sense of danger. The best moments linger because they feel earned through patient pacing and a willingness to let the horror breathe. While some narrative threads may become tangled as the plot progresses, the emotional impact of the more disturbing sequences remains unforgettable. The film’s strength lies in its ability to confront the audience with a creeping dread that feels both personal and universal, a reminder that evil can hide in plain sight and emerge when least expected. The result is a chilling experience that lingers long after the final scene fades.