💀Vicious (2025) Review — Fear, Guilt, and the Curse You Can’t Escape 👁️

Streaming now on Paramount+

“The box knows what you fear. And it will make you prove it.”

Horror filmmaker Bryan Bertino, best known for The Strangers and The Monster, returns with another psychological gut punch — Vicious. Starring Dakota Fanning in one of her most intense performances to date, this 2025 horror-thriller is less about jump scares and more about the terror of self-destruction and regret.

Premiering at Fantastic Fest before landing on Paramount+ and digital VOD on October 10, 2025, Vicious feels like a ghost story and a morality play twisted into one — a film that asks, “What would you sacrifice to survive?”

🕯️ The Story — When the Box Arrives

Polly (played brilliantly by Dakota Fanning) is a woman adrift — stuck in her 30s, weighed down by disappointment, and overshadowed by her successful sister, Lainie (Rachel Blanchard). Her only real joy is her young niece, Aly, until one fateful night when an elderly stranger (Kathryn Hunter) knocks on her door.

The woman gives Polly a small wooden box and an hourglass, whispering: “You’re going to die tonight.”

What follows is a descent into psychological horror. Polly’s phone calls twist into demonic voices. The box begins demanding offerings — something she hates, something she needs, and something she loves. Each “gift” pushes her closer to madness. Cigarettes aren’t enough. Faith isn’t enough. Flesh becomes currency.

“You can’t hide from yourself, Polly. The box already knows.”

As Polly’s sanity unravels, she realizes the only escape is to pass the curse on — but the price of survival might be too cruel to bear.

🧩 A Puzzle Box of Terror

Bertino crafts Vicious like a haunted riddle — every scene tightening around the viewer like a vice. The film doesn’t rely on cheap scares but rather on existential dread, much like The Ring or Hereditary. The wooden box isn’t just a cursed object; it’s a metaphor for guilt, repression, and the price of denial.

Each act of mutilation Polly performs feels disturbingly personal — as if she’s not trying to appease a demon, but punishing herself for a life unlived.

Cinematographer Tristan Nyby paints the house in cold shadows and sickly yellows, turning the once cozy home into a coffin. Meanwhile, Tom Schraeder’s score hums like something breathing under the floorboards — low, anxious, relentless.

🎭 The Performances — Fanning in Fearless Form

Dakota Fanning’s performance anchors the entire film. Her Polly is fragile but fierce, unraveling in front of us with terrifying realism. There’s a scene where she stares at the hourglass, realizing time is literally slipping away — her silent panic is more chilling than any scream.

Kathryn Hunter (the witch from The Tragedy of Macbeth) is the film’s spectral force, her body language and voice so unnatural that she feels otherworldly. Rachel Blanchard brings nuance as the sister whose perfection only deepens Polly’s despair, and Devyn Nekoda shines as Tara, the unlucky next recipient of the curse.

“The box doesn’t choose the wicked. It chooses the broken.”

💉 Themes — Fear, Faith & Self-Punishment

At its core, Vicious is a story about self-loathing and the destructive cycle of comparison. The supernatural elements serve as mirrors to Polly’s psyche — every ghost is a reflection of what she hates about herself.

Like Bertino’s previous films, Vicious leans into emotional horror, using supernatural punishment as a metaphor for real pain: grief, guilt, and regret. The ending — grim, ambiguous, cyclical — suggests that evil isn’t an outside force. It’s something we carry within.

🩸 Cinematic Style — The Beauty of Dread

Visually, Vicious is restrained yet suffocating. The camera rarely leaves Polly’s house, making every shadow feel like it’s closing in. The editing by Tad Dennis keeps the tension razor-sharp — lingering just long enough on the grotesque to make your skin crawl.

This isn’t a flashy horror movie. It’s quietly terrifying, the kind of film that leaves you uneasy long after it ends.

🔥 Final Verdict — A Chilling Descent into Despair

Vicious is a haunting return to form for Bryan Bertino, who once again proves that the scariest monsters are the ones that live inside us. It’s brutal, beautifully made, and unrelentingly bleak — a film that makes you question what you’d give up to be free.

If The Strangers was about the horror outside, Vicious is about the horror within.

⭐ Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)

🎬 Best For: Fans of Hereditary, The Babadook, and The Witch

👁️ Scare Level: Psychological dread over gore

🕯️ Streaming: Now on Paramount+

“You make the choices. The box decides your destiny.”

🧠 FAQs — Vicious (2025)

Q1. What is Vicious about?

It follows Polly, a struggling woman who receives a mysterious box that curses her, forcing her to offer up what she hates, needs, and loves before the night ends.

Q2. Who directed Vicious?

The film is written and directed by Bryan Bertino, the mind behind The Strangers and The Monster.

Q3. Where can I watch Vicious?

Vicious is available now on Paramount+ and digital VOD platforms.

Q4. Who stars in Vicious?

The cast includes Dakota Fanning, Kathryn Hunter, Mary McCormack, Rachel Blanchard, and Devyn Nekoda.

Q5. Is Vicious based on a true story or book?

No, it’s an original horror screenplay written by Bryan Bertino, though it draws thematic influence from folklore-style curses and moral parables.

Q6. How long is the movie?

The runtime is 98 minutes.

Q7. What’s the meaning behind the ending?

The ending suggests that the curse is cyclical — evil passes from one “broken” soul to another, feeding on fear and guilt.

⚰️ Conclusion — The Fear That Finds You

In Vicious, the box isn’t just an object of horror — it’s a symbol of everything Polly refuses to face.Bryan Bertino weaves dread and emotion into a single, suffocating experience, while Dakota Fanning gives a career-defining performance.

This is not just a scarefest — it’s a mirror reflecting the parts of ourselves we try hardest to bury.

“You think you can escape your fears. But your fears live here.”

🎃 Vicious — now streaming on Paramount+ — will leave you questioning what you’d give up to survive the night.