IMPOSTERS

****

Directed by Caleb Phillips.

Starring Jessica Rothe, Charlie Barnett, Yul Vasquez.

Horror, US, 102 Minutes.

Reviewed as part of Tubi FrightFest 2026

While seemingly small in scale and subject, writer and director Caleb Phillips makes a strong impression with this twisty tale of a missing child that spins off in a number of tantalising and often disturbing directions.

Jessica Rothe, moving further and further away from the bubbly character of the HAPPY DEATH DAY films that made her name, plays Marie a mother who dotes on her newborn baby and frets about not making any friends in the leafy neighbourhood she has just moved into with her husband, Paul, an ex-policeman, played by Charlie Barnett, also impressive. Paul has his own concerns, although they are of a far more dishonest nature, but when their son is seemingly abducted, the desperate couple find themselves increasingly at odds with each other when Marie returns home with the child after an extensive search.

Phillips' slow burn tale is best left explained as little as possible, leaving the viewer to experience its various twists and turns in its own surprising and supremely satisfying fashion. While very much a character study of a husband and wife at odds with each other, the film's plot shifts in a progression of events, and shifting perspectives, that will keep the audience engaged and on their toes throughout.

The measured storytelling builds up to a gripping final act that contains one of the most startling and shocking scenes that will play at this year's FrightFest. While dipping its toes into the trendy Liminal stylings that have become increasingly prevalent over the past year, IMPOSTERS makes the most of its limited resources with its haunting, increasingly bloody story that lingers long in the memory. With this film, Phillips proves himself a formidable writer and director who brings a touch of the otherworldly to its recognisable yet troubling domestic setting.

Iain MacLeod