Nightborn is a new horror movie that, albeit with a vastly different story, still gives me the same disturbing feelings that I got from last year’s Bring Her Back, with Sally Hawkins.
For this one, married couple Saga (Seidi Haarla) and Jon (Rupert Grint – Knock at the Cabin) are full of hope as they move into her old family home in Finland, but since it’s been abandoned, it’s turned into a complete shithole with a tree growing up through the middle of the front room!
Still, a quick spruce up, and for Saga, she gave birth to a daughter, within a year a walker… Nah, actually, it’s a boy. And he’s rarely shown properly, so you just get slight glimpses – such as his incredibly hairy back when born – along with the ungodly gnarling and munching noises that he makes.
This even leads to pain as baby Kuura suckles at her breast, drawing blood. And then to make matters worse, her mother (Pirkko Saisio) turns up!
Still, in addition, we also have Jon’s parents played by John Thomson (Break Clause) and the lovely Rebecca Lacey, who’s still stunning at 61, and I haven’t seen her in as long as I can remember, but I do remember her in the ’80s sitcom Home To Roost, as Julie, sister to Reece Dinsdale and daugher to John Thaw.
Nightborn has plenty of excessively mad shit happening throughout its brief 91-minute running time, and feels like it out-Omens The Omen!
Since this was an ‘unseen’ preview, where the title isn’t revealed until it starts – although the clues were deciphered by people far better than me, and even though at least one man and another couple walked out during the film – and I can see why it would be divisive – for me, it’s absolutely mad as cheese, and I loved it… as well as being stunned that it was just a 15-certificate! I’d looked away as the BBFC title card appeared, so didn’t realise that until afterwards, and assumed this was an 18!
Only one slight annoyance: The film has what feels like scores of opening logos before it actually begins. How many production companies were involved??
NOTE: There are no mid- nor post-credits scenes.
Nightborn is in cinemas from Friday October 30th, and is available to pre-order on Blu-ray and DVD, ahead of the release date on December 14th.
Detailed specs:
Cert: 
Running time: 91 minutes
Release date: October 30th 2026
Studio: Shudder
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Cinema: Odeon Trafford Centre
Rating: 9/10
Director: Hanna Bergholm
Producers: Daniel Kuitunen, Noémie Devide
Writers: Hanna Bergholm, Ilja Rautsi
Music: Eicca Toppinen
Cast:
Saga: Seidi Haarla
Jon: Rupert Grint
Taru: Pamela Tola
Saga’s Mother: Pirkko Saisio
Jon’s Mother: Rebecca Lacey
Jon’s Father: John Thomson
Anna: Silvia Saloranta
Saga’s Colleague: Satu Tuuli Karhu
Saga’s Colleague: Johanna Kuuva
Saga’s Colleague: Mari Rantasila
Saga’s Colleague: Helena Rängman
Maternity Clinic Nurse: Jaana Pesonen
Midwives: Lotta Kaihua, Katja Nugent
Doctor: Kaisa El Ramly
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.