“It Feeds” (2025) stands out as an ambitious supernatural horror film that harnesses expert craftsmanship, emotional depth, and a chilling atmosphere to deliver an experience that resonates beyond its familiar genre trappings. Writer-director Chad Archibald spins a tale filled with metaphoric substance—intertwining the monstrous with the psychological in a memorable story about trauma, grief, and a mother-daughter psychic legacy.
Story and Metaphor
The narrative follows Cynthia Winstone (Ashley Greene), a compassionate therapist with clairvoyant gifts, and her teenage daughter, Jordan (Ellie O’Brien), who is learning to follow in her mother’s footsteps. Their world is upended when Riley Harris (Shayelin Martin), a tormented girl with a grotesque supernatural entity attached, stumbles into their lives seeking help. Cynthia’s refusal to treat Riley at first triggers friction between her and Jordan while the girl’s suffering—and the presence haunting her—forces the family to confront their own buried pain.
The monster of “It Feeds” is more than just a source of terror; it’s a manifestation of unresolved trauma and grief. The movie deftly uses its supernatural elements as a metaphor for how pain and loss can fester and “feed” on a person when unaddressed, giving the narrative a potent, emotional hook that distinguishes it from lesser horror fare.
Performances and Characters
- Ashley Greene’s performance earns consistent acclaim for balancing nurturing resolve with vulnerability, making Cynthia a deeply sympathetic anchor for the story.
- Ellie O’Brien shines as Jordan, playing the daughter with authentic compassion and determination; her chemistry with Greene offers some of the film’s most affecting moments.
- Shawn Ashmore delivers a tense, emotional supporting turn as the father of Riley, further exploring the film’s themes of parental desperation and fractured family ties.
- Supporting roles from Juno Rinaldi provide both comic relief and additional emotional texture, helping balance the darkness with moments of levity.
Visual Style and Creature Design
The visuals in “It Feeds” elevate the horror experience to new heights:
- Cinematographer Jeff Maher crafts a distinct sense of unease by narrowing focus and using shadowy, confined spaces to immerse the viewer in Cynthia’s perspective.
- The sequences where Cynthia “enters” the minds of her patients are especially inventive—each styled to reflect the inner landscape of its subject, expanding the movie’s visual and thematic palette.
- Creature design by Daniella Pluchino is a major highlight: The monster is genuinely frightening when on screen, aided by practical effects and sparing use of direct close-ups to maximize suspense.
- Make-up and set pieces build an atmosphere of rot and decay, reinforcing the metaphoric link between supernatural horror and internal suffering.
Pacing, Scares, and Emotional Impact
The opening act is widely praised for its brisk momentum and rapid establishment of stakes, though some critics feel this energy doesn’t always carry through the quieter stretches.
Well-timed jump scares and an intense, eerie score keep tension high, while patient storytelling allows dread to mount before each horrific reveal.
The film avoids overexposing its monster, letting the imagination do much of the work—heightening fear and maintaining suspense.
Emotional beats are given time to breathe, and the film’s climax delivers both a physical showdown and a cathartic reckoning with the characters’ emotional wounds.
The flash-forward ending receives specific praise for giving closure and tying together the story’s themes, making the overall experience more satisfying.
Strengths
- Atmosphere and Visuals: Rich, unsettling imagery supports a slow-burning horror tone that lingers.
- Performances: The cast, especially Greene and O’Brien, deliver emotionally resonant work that grounds the supernatural in believable human stakes.
- Metaphoric Narrative: By linking the monster to trauma and loss, the film achieves thematic resonance uncommon for creature features.
- Practical Effects: Expert creature and make-up designs add lasting emotional and visual impact, avoiding CGI overkill.
Weaknesses
- Familiar Tropes: Some reviewers note that the movie’s possession and trauma metaphors, while compelling, do not break entirely new ground within horror traditions.
- Occasional Pacing Issues: A dynamic opening gives way to slower, repetitive investigation scenes in the middle act, which may test the patience of those craving constant scares.
- Mystery Limitations: The origins and lore of the entity remain vague, which some found an intentional but limiting creative choice.
Audience Reaction and Legacy
“It Feeds” has garnered attention for its willingness to be more than just a fright-fest—inviting viewers to reflect on the intersections of horror and healing, and drawing genuine empathy for its leads. While the film’s greatest strength is its emotional core and character dynamics, genre fans will find plenty to appreciate in its scares, visuals, and haunting set pieces.
If seeking a supernatural film that balances genuine fear with psychological and emotional nuance, “It Feeds” is an unmissable entry in 2025’s horror slate—one that lingers in the mind after the last frame fades away.