Overview: A few weeks into their van life adventure, a young couple witnesses an accident that leaves the driver dead. Soon, they’re being pursued by a demonic stalker who’s impossible to outrun and follows them wherever they go.

Verdict: When the trailer for this movie dropped it was immediately dubbed the scariest film of the year by those who had viewed it and the internet was abuzz with analysis of the clip. Whilst I appreciate trailers can be misleading, thanks to the initial reactions and as a horror fan, I was really looking forward to this. It seemed to utilize jump scares and a lot of practical effects which I love.

Director André Øvredal also has good form for creating decent horrors having previously helmed movies such as 2016’s The Autopsy of Jane Doe and 2023’s The Last Voyage of the Demeter. It also features Oscar winner Melissa Leo, who is a terrific actress. The signs were good.

The premise is a simple one. A young couple, played by Jacob Scipio and Lou Llobell, pack up their apartment to embrace van life. If you’re not familiar with this concept it basically involves living in a van which has been converted into a micro home. That alone is a horrifying idea for me - but each to their own!

At first, van life is everything they hoped it would be, filled with nonstop adventures and a supportive community. But there are rules to living on the road, rules that have been passed down from generation to generation from the darkest backroads of American highways. And when Maddie convinces Tyler to stop and help a car in distress, they accidentally break the most sacred rule of the road: never stop, especially far away from civilization, because you never know what might climb aboard when you’re not looking.