Vivarium's Horror of Nothing 

What was your favorite moment from Vivarium (if you have one, that is)?

You're over analyzing it. This movie was about how real estate agents are made.

This movie is pure dread. I don't get why it is reviewed negative by most people. I think the missing background of the creatures and the purposelesness of their existence adds to the dread. They simply exist and reproduct, killing humans in the process. And by doing so they are a perfect mirror how we act on this planet and with the beings around us.

The shot of all the same houses with the single one having “help” on the roof instills some sense of primal dread in me. The fake clouds also make me feel some sort of instinctual, deep fear.

What I liked the most was how the girl tries so hard to find out what is happening and gets a very brief grasp on it, just to die. It really cements the pointlessness of their struggle, it's like a goldfish trying to flee his aquarium.

Did anyone else get chills/genuinely freaked out by the neighborhood in general, like it really reminded me of the scenery from The Cat in the Hat (I’m being fully serious, it made me extremely uncomfortable).

The screaming of the child alone is something that was so wild in this movie. It was maddening as a viewer, I can't even imagine being unable to escape it.

Shit is terrifying when the alien boy just lifts up the concrete, showing how he only has access to the fabric of the world and how malleable it is.

9 may have been chosen instead of 8 because the path taken to draw a 9 has a specific starting point, but then curves back on itself and becomes trapped in a loop.

The movie felt like a nightmare. The false/ surreal nature of it was so weird. I thought that one of the most terrifying parts was when Gemma ends up forming somewhat of a bond with it.

i enjoyed this film a lot. it’s honestly so scary to me, a teenager, feeling this existential dread of finally meeting the monotony of adulthood. i don’t understand why people LOATHE this movie, i find the lack of real answer or purpose to be exactly the point, just like you said.

I didn't realise this film had attracted so much dislike. Sure, it was flawed, but on the whole I really enjoyed it.

the aspect of the food having no flavor was an element that scared me so horribly. im very passionate about food and i cant even imagine a life where the food has no flavor and its all just prepackaged lumps of nothing, made in the shape of food. this whole movie wrapped its grubby little fingers around my fear of just surviving.

First time i saw the film.. The endless labyrinth of houses terrified me, not because of the creatures in it but more about the fact that there no escape besides death.. the slow creeping wait for death

This movie has stuck with me more than any other recent horror movie I've ever seen. It almost has a sense of cosmic dread.

First spirals, now loops. Waiting to see which geometric concept gets horrorized next.

I just watched the movie yesterday, and I think your interpretation is pretty bang on. I think some reviewers try to find deeper meaning in this movie, but I think the point is very simple: We are seeing a human version of the cuckoo life cycle. I think that's pretty much it.

After watching this movie, I felt depressed for 2 days. I've seen tons of horror films and I can say that Vivarium is one of the best horrors I've ever seen. The dread and the uneasiness I felt while watching it is unmatched. Halfway in when I realized it was a metaphor for the human's life cycle, it hit me like a gut-punch. And because of the dark tone and the atmosphere of the movie, I physically felt sick. This is what I got from it: (We as in humankind) We live in houses that look alike- there's no uniqueness. We are here to work ourselves to death. (dig till he dies) We are here to reproduce, to raise next-generation possible evils, some of us didn't even want to have kids but life just happened that way and now they're stuck with the responsibility of raising a baby. The kid repeats everything the protagonist says, not because he wants to be annoying, but it represents how parenting works in real life; what you do or say, your kids will probably learn from you and do the same. There are a lot more metaphors I could draw from it but those are what stuck with me after watching it a few months back.

The number 9 is a message in and of itself. It has a loop with a line going away. And a solid understanding in sigils shows the message to be, “break the cycle.”

I had no idea that people disliked it, I thought it was excellent. Masterful dread, I was hooked by the end of the first scene. The warbler feeding the grotesquely large but still infantile cuckoo is such a horrible and ominous image. The rest of the movie lived up to the horror drawn from nature. Have people complaining that it was pointless just never watched a horror movie?

After watching this movie I started hating Cuckoo birds.

this movie reminds me of scene where squirdward move to the real estate looping the same thing everytime

Honestly it just shows how the one size fits all isn't perfect. Both the characters have very nurturing, creative jobs and are actually nice, hardworking people and in their rush to try and fit in they lose everything. I think this movie is great cause even if everything is shown to you it still makes you wonder or hope if they're gonna make it out. But you know deep down they won't and then you get to wondering if you would ever make it out and that's when the fear hits you.

It would've benefited a great deal by being shorter but I liked Vivarium. But then again I don't have kids, am not married, and a house in the suburbs would be like hell to me so I'm probably more the target audience.

I saw this movie two months into lockdown after having not interacted with anyone for nearly the entire time. I felt so hollow and harrowed by the end of the movie. It really got its point across and for me that makes for a good movie.

The “fakeness” of the community reminds me of the town in Edward Scissorhands and The Lorax. It is very interesting and even though I understand the dislike, I very much enjoy the feeling of it all

who would have killed the alien baby??? I would.

Idk who isn't scared of this movie, as soon as the clouds show up im like lololol NOPE

I loved this movie! It burrowed deep inside my psyche and laid it's creepy, stylistic eggs and lives there taunting me from a place within myself. The walls muffle it's words to an unintelligible level but it's tone is so mocking I can infer it's intent. I am convinced it will lodge there until I am freed from this veil of tears.

tahnk you for pointing out that detail about the clouds... its kinda creepy.

So this is where Jared Kushner comes from.

This movie is close to the ultimate proof that there's just no pleasing some people... Movies with hidden subtext gets dismissed as anything from smug and difficult to TRYING to be smug and difficult. And then there's a movie like this, with almost NO hidden subtext. You don't have to look for the message, because it's right there, large as life, for anyone to see. And then THAT'S not good either... 'Vivarium' creeped me out. It was unpleasant, infuriating and gave me anxiety - and for all that, I really liked it!

I loved the uniqueness of this film. It was haunting and honest. It perfectly illustrates the emptiness of many people's lives and "pursuits"

My wife and I watched this when our kid was about 4, and did it ever twist our anxieties of being good parents into this horrifying turn. Any scene of attempting an empathetic interaction with the child made my stomach sink. To this day we still say "I'M A MYSTERY" to each other our in impression of the child's voice, usually when one of us is really focused on that anxiety.

I think it's a visual metaphor for married/parenting life, the repetitive nature of it all. How what we would imagine to be a perfect home and neighborhood, can gradually turn into an imperfect nightmare!

If you liked this film I highly recommend checking out the similarly plotted second season (and the other three seasons) of the criminally underrated show, Channel Zero.

I just placed whole new meaning on "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" with a sudden realization that title was way more awesome than I'd ever given it credit.

This is the type of movies I consider art...

this movie was so weird and uncomfortable. i took a shower after finishing it

This movie reminded me of the empty terror of my suburban childhood.

This movie brought with it the greatest fears of mine: having a child and the meaninglessness of everything around me :) Edit: god you guys are annoying just accept not everyone wants kids and a lot of us are afraid of it. Congratulations if you do no one asked.

Gemma: Why do you keep digging? Tom: It's gotta lead somewhere, right? This interaction here is the one that stuck with me the most

Your videos are amazing, the effort you put on your work it's clearly noticeable, I love it.

Part of the reason why I love this movie is that the creatures are never explained. Unknown and unknowable. Aaaand they're really upfront about it with the character design innit

This movie scared the crap out of me as a child in ways i couldn't explain . Sure the alien baby is scary but the idea of not being able to leave that town terrified me

Great! Finally a long overdue and utmost justified film about the horrors of Scandinavian interior design!

It's been about 30 minutes since I watched this movie and I still have the chills, I think it might be the scariest movie I've ever seen, it's not like other movies where it's spooky or gross out gor instead it gave me this this deep down sense of dread, it felt like an actual nightmare. I kept tearing up, shaking or getting chillsat at seemingly random moments, I even screamed a little when they went under.

The end of the film... when Complicated Game by XTC kicks in, that sold me, that ending was so brilliantly done it wrapped everything up and just put a bow tie on top. I got goosebumps throughout that whole sequence it was so well done

This movie looks like an indie music video clip, where everything looks beautiful, but hollow.

I wonder if the aliens would provide other commodities upon request. Also, if there ever was any real chance in being “released”. The way they work in her being a school teacher and being able to manipulate the boy into revealing his true form was a nice touch. The parallel dimensions was also very trippy and thrilling to have further insight to what other prisoners were doing.

I loved this movie, it made me feel indescribable dread. But I don’t think it is a metaphor for human life at all, but nature in general - why does anything exist? Biologically speaking, the purpose of all life is to reproduce, creating new life to repeat the cycle. There’s not a reason for animals or plants or even bacteria to exist, they just do, and reproducing the species is the ultimate goal. That’s why the aliens(?) where doing that to humans, much like the cuckoo in the beginning of the movie they’re parasitic: they rely on humans to raise their babies. The entire purpose of the whole thing is to guarantee their species reproduction, nothing more. EDIT: I actually wrote this comment before watching the video, in a response to most of the other comments... wonderful analysis!

The neighborhood in the movie is actually not very different from many American suburbian gated communities, where every house is basically the same. Last year I visited such a place in California desert, a few hours ride from LA and it gave a similar dead vibe, especially in the evening and at night, though the houses were certainly occupied by families. My impression was that they people living there are merely waiting for death to come. It already gave me some chills athough I hadn't seen "Vivarium" back then.

Just when i was really getting into it, bam, a fucking ad. It feels like being near climax but then denied.

I didn't bring this up before cause I felt it was kinda obvious but I haven't see anyone else mention it so I guess I'll bring it up. It seems pretty obvious that this film is trying to evoke the feelings of being an animal trapped in a cage. Like, nothing's real, the things you interact with aren't natural, there's just enough stimulation to stop you from going insane, the food is bland, there's this vague underline feeling that you're being watched. They don't really exist for any reason other than....simply existing. That's a pet. Not like a dog or a cat but like a bird, or a lizard. They're being held as pets. In a vivarium. This isn't just about us being driven away from nature, it's about us attempting to capture it from the perspective of the captured.

The neighborhood itself is creepy asf. I hate it. It’s literally how a nightmare would start.

Loved this film when I saw it. Never seen anything like it and despite the fact nothing much happens I was still amused by how they coped day to day and interacted with each other, at first with their futile attempts to escape or seek help, and eventually the acceptance of their fate and descent into madness

It has to be a reference to the ghost-estates that sprang up around Ireland in the mid 2000's, developments that were abandoned after the financial crisis. Just endless, copy and pasted estates with no one living in them.

I haven't watched this movie but I just found your channel. Dude you're brilliant, I love how you're able to explain things that people don't realize on a conscious level, like why the fakeness bothers us: because of the hollowness. I'm in awe of your ability to articulate. :)

Most commentators here agree: this was a GREAT film. I really don't see how you could view it otherwise. The message(s) was/were pretty clear to me, the execution and feel of the movie brilliant. We enjoyed it thoroughly. One of the best horrors of the past years.

This film gave me pure, primal dread the entire 97 minute runtime. What a horrible, hysterical, nightmarish trip.

The green shade used is the same colors that Disney uses as it’s background staging doors and things it doesn’t want people to notice. It’s called “go away green”

I’ve been digging through your videos, they look an awful lot like my ‘watched movie’ list! Subbed!

The film was a work of genius in a myriad of ways. Very imaginative, would love to see what a follow-up movie could do.

I never considered this as a bad movie, quite the contrary. This films really intrigued me, trying to understand every single detail from it made it hard, nothing made sense but now that you say it, pointlessness is the word to describe it. Some events were really hard to explain, like the parallel house or the flavorless food. This video really helped me understand a bit more but still, there are things I cant really grasp on.

I recently watched Vivarium on a whim, even though I don't care for Jesse Eisenberg at all. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it after a few viewings. The addition of Ska to anything in life is also awesome. 🙂

Loved the way you told it. Looking forward for more such amazing stuff

I like this film. I can see why alot of people wouldn't like it, no one wants their art to make them think anymore. You have to spoon feed the masses

tbh I took it as a read on Lorcan and Garret's experiences in film as an art form and, in the case of people who make it their career and passion, their lives. There's this weird mindset in some film studios where they ask you to treat the film you're working on (whether as an assistant or as a producer) as if it's your child, studios like Pixar are particularly (in)famous for this. I sorta took this film as a great encapsulation on how film (and art/passions in general) can cause us to be robins taking care of a cuckoo. Cuckoos are genuinely very beautiful birds who are simply trying to survive but are still doing so at a cost to another group, in this case the workers who actually make the film come to fruition. It's kinda similar to Nope by Jordan Peele in how the film can be read as his experiences working in Hollywood as a black artist.

the best explanation for this movie.. i appreciate how you included comparison clips to show the metaphors..

I enjoyed every moment of your analysis...and I think there is something beautiful in the seeming pointlessness of life, in a reality where our most profound questions seem almost unanswerable...we must carry-on with the mundane day-to-day necessities. Subscribed 🎥📽️🎦🎬

I really enjoyed this film. It almost made my top ten from last year. I hadn't read any reviews, and I'm kinda surprised it got such negative feedback.

The production of this video alone is so high-end. I hope you reach a million subs. Will look forward for your next vids.

this movie was especially relatable because of the pandemic. living the same day over and over and over again and that cycle of dread is represented perfectly in vivarium.

You enlighten me! this make so much sense now thank you as always

This was one of the best horror movies I've ever watched. I would love to see a sequel.

Cool video and amazing editing. Thanks to you I found myself really into horror movies.

It was a genius film. I watched it at night with headphones on the whole time I was thinking, what is going on? But I never left my seat.

I hadnt even heard of this movie but you really sold it ill have to check it out. Something funny though, since you had already showed clips/described the end and i saw someone mention how hood the music in that scen was i decided to youtube the ending; and theres like a 35 minute video explaining the ending, something tells me they dont get it if it took 25 min just to say “the aliens’ life cycle is like the cuckoo foreshadowed in the beginning” the simplicity of it really is a nice treat

Vivarium was the most unsettling film I've ever watched and that is a compliment to the work and director. It was so well executed, it made me never want to live a banal and bland life.

Out of every single horror movie I've ever watched, this is the only one that got into my head and I couldn't stop thinking about it for over a week. Its surprising what scares and what sticks with you

Dude, love watching you videos! Your commentary is really insightful and I've been making it a point to watch the movies you showcase before checking out your videos. Great stuff again, keep it up!

Your analysis in the context of nature is interesting. Certainly nature (or rather lack of it) plays an important role here. Although I was more interested in the metaphor of parenthood. A child appearing unexpectedly in the family on the one hand strengthens the relationship, but on the other it is a huge challenge for young parents. The child itself, as a being, is also so detached from our adulthood, different in terms of psychological and ibiological needs, that it seems to be a completely different form of creature. Foreign. Alien even. The film also talks in an interesting way about the consequences of a lack of sensitivity and acceptance of a child. Would adult Martin 2 still be so alien if he were shown more understanding and love? Wouldn't every creature be a monster if he had heard from his mother all his life that he was not her son? The problem with this film is that it serves interesting, yet quite simple things, in a very monotonous and tedious form. Of course, this monotony is necessary to create an allegory of life. However, the director went a bit too far with it and the film, unfortunately, just drags on :( PS I like your reasoning and argumentation, but in my opinion at the end you've went a bit too far. 9 is definitely not a loop :)

I would have never guessed that people disliked this movie. Of course, it isn't a masterpiece, but even without understanding all the metaphors and meaning, it was entertaining, interesting and definitely scary. When i watched it i simply thought it was a metaphore of the average "adult" life.

I haven't yet seen this film but your description of the place with the fake clouds reminds me of the idea of Liminal Spaces greatly. Liminal Spaces are common in game design, and the uneasy feeling these spaces create are often experienced when exploring game environments designed for multiple players solo; Counterstrike maps are a great example.

This movie was several layers of unsettling

I loved your analysis and I can say I understand the film much better. I can also say as a 43 year old single male that lives alone and always has - I decided as a young teenager that the cycle of life that humans so delicately and deliberately follow was absolutely not for me.

the thought of being stuck in a place, no color, no change, no...life to it. i’m someone who falls into from those depressive episodes are nothing feels different, where every day feels the same with no meaning... falling into those periods is hell. i couldn’t imagine just living like that for the rest of life...

i hadn't thought about the punch of the movie. very good video!

I’m really liking your work, man.

As a childfree person, I *got* this film. I think the very concept of it makes a lot of people mad. Truthfully this is how I think of people who live in the suburbs, crank out kids, & work all the time. You live, you die, and in between you lose yourself to all the things you're *supposed* do to but that you hate, and that end up meaningless in the end

This night be my favorite horror movie just because of how pointless it is. They are just another family, they are not the first or last. Just another couple caught in the trap. Absolutely horrifying knowing that nothing changes at the end of the film...

honestly. this film felt so suffocating and distressing that I can't ever bring myself to watch it again.

I adore this movie. This movie gives off such a unique vibe and dread you won’t get from any other film

I was blown away by this movie! Essence of existentialism. Hard to stomach, but not less true because of it.

9 isn't just a loop, it's a loop that starts somewhere else, but then reaches a point where it just goes in an endless circle, just like they do in the movie.

I go to sleep to this movie every night. This movie is so weird, but I love every bit of it, and I don’t understand why! 😩😩😩 I can’t stop watching it!

This movie scared the crap out of me. Why? Because the "horror" is in how helpless the main characters were. I can run from the masked killer, I can fight the axe wielding murderer, I can learn how to counter the demonic forces, but here, in Vivarium, there's nothing you can do. Utterly helpless. And the reason the main characters didn't just refuse to care for the baby or just kill it? Hope. They were told that if they cooperated they would be freed. Plus, like the cuckoo, we are preprogrammed to care for babies.

The song at the end was cool too. "It's just a complicated game"...

A vivarium (Latin, literally for "place of life"; plural: vivaria or vivariums) is an area, usually enclosed, for keeping and raising animals or plants for observation or research. Water-based vivaria may have open tops providing they are not connected to other water bodies. An animal enclosure is considered a vivarium only if it provides quality of life through naturalistic components such as ample living space and natural decor that allow and encourage natural behaviours. Often, a portion of the ecosystem for a particular species is simulated on a smaller scale, with controls for environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity and light. A vivarium may be small enough to sit on a desk or table, such as a terrarium or an aquarium, or may be a very large structure, possibly outdoors. Large vivaria, particularly those holding organisms capable of flight, typically include some sort of a dual-door mechanism such as a sally port for entry and exit, so that the outer door can be closed to prevent escape before the inner door is opened.

This feels like a lost Lovecraft short story adapted into a horror film. cosmic horror at its finest