Overlook 2026 Review: PARASOMNIA Excels at Bringing Nightmares to Life

As a critic, at least for me, there's nothing better than discovering a fresh, exciting filmmaking voice. Enter James Ross II, with his efficiently creepy feature debut, Parasomnia. The film made a big enough splash to catch Shudder's eye, which acquired the sleepy-scary nightmare prior to its Overlook Film Festival premiere. You can expect solid bones, tight performances, and a strong sense of how to orchestrate the crowd-pleasing scares that horror fans crave. For a first-timer, Mr. Ross should be damn proud.

Jasmine Mathews stars as nervous sleeper Riley, who follows rigid bedtime rules. Thanks to a traumatizing childhood experience, Riley demands that she be the last one to fall asleep wherever she is, whether at home with boyfriend Cam (RJ Brown), or when foster house sibling David (Stephen Barrington) comes to visit. Riley's plagued by visions of a dungeon maze and a figure in pursuit; she worries the villain, dubbed “The Seer” (Simon Longnight), could enter reality if precautions aren't taken. But when David claims he sees a strange presence while staying with Riley, he fears another "episode" may have broken containment.

The cerebral haunts of Parasomnia deal in the language of night terrors, REM sleep behavior disorders, and demonic overtones to recurring nasty dreams. Riley develops survival techniques, like her ability to instantly fall asleep through a breathing exercise, but what's explored here is the inescapable dread of having your unconscious moments invaded by the supernatural. Ross represents Riley's unwaking torments with this unending labyrinth of abandoned buildings, like she's running through Freddy Krueger's factory underbelly setting. Close behind is this grinning bastard that gains ground the farther she scampers, until another ferocious scare. 

There's a terrifying urgency about Riley's panic in these moments, as Ross adheres to a tried-and-true formula for effective on-screen frights. In Riley's dangerous dreamland, red light filters spark alarm as she traverses dingy, hell-on-earth locales you'd associate with unsafe feelings. In Riley's reality, as Cam, David, and others encounter her snoozy stalker, it's more The Strangers, as this unsettling outline of something inhuman transports from background haunts to foreground attacks in only a few blinks. There's an awful inevitability about the Seer’s appearance, and then, when he actually gets a hold of his victims? Ross goes for the killshot with gruesome imagery that crawls under your skin, with truly icky and disturbing visions of ocular trauma.

Although there's more to Parasomnia than a gauntlet of grinning bastards and stomach-churning violence. In the film's more dramatic moments, the development of lore and backstory can feel sluggish. It's an extremely independent effort that can't always rely on its terror tactics, and in its softer punches, succumbs to deflation. Not detrimentally so, but Parasomnia is inarguably at its best when Ross is playing in his monster's despicable sandbox. Emotional beats are a harder sell, as acts transition to reveal plot-shifting secrets about the characters involved. It's almost as if the film has trouble believing in its own outlandish concept and, in turn, struggles to sell its dialogue-heavy buildup.

Still, Ross' cast can deliver dreadful swerves as Parasomnia explores horrors hidden behind curses, chameleons, and devestating entities. Mathews shines as Riley, whether confronting the perils of her insidious sleep state or wrestling with the hysteria that befalls her, Cam, and David. Also, Sally Stewart deserves a shout-out as Cam's "Mama," who becomes a pivotal player as Ross' story exposes the devils around Riley, whom she might not suspect. Ross gambles on a fractured narrative, divided by character focus, that sometimes feels uncontrollable yet holds enough suspense to keep us clinging to reveal after reveal.

The Black-created, Black-led Parasomnia is a noteworthy start for a horror storyteller who clearly wants to provoke and experiment. It's an unnerving thesis about evils slithering in plain sight, massaged into a low-budget chiller that succeeds thanks to Ross' stellar filmic instincts. The right moments become so articulately terrifying, and while underwhelming elsewhere, there's a refreshing endurance about Ross' follow-through. If you're looking for an underdog horror watch that's easy to root for, check for Parasomnia when it's added to Shudder's catalog.

Movie Score: 3/5