‘The Other People’ review: Dir. Chad McClarnon [FrightFest 2025]

One of the best things about attending a genre festival such as FrightFest, is that over the course of several days of horror films, new fears become unlocked. Whilst many of them are, for the most part, irrational, there are always instances where they are more understandable. That is most definitely the case in Chad McClarnon’s The Other People.

Based on real events, The Other People finds new stepmother Rachel (Lyndie Greenwood) navigating strange occurrences in her new home. Her young step-daughter, Abby (Valentina Lucido), befriends a boy called Eric. Initially writing Eric off as an imaginary playmate, Rachel realises that his origins are far more terrifying. Although it is fairly easy to work out exactly what is happening, The Other People still plays with the audience. The situation might seem straightforward, but McClarnon sows seeds of doubt, introducing some supernatural elements into proceedings so while some parts of The Other People’s story are obviously tied to reality, not everything can be fully explained. Just like the great episodes of The X-Files, The Other People is resolved just enough to appease the audience, whilst dangling a teasing thread that unravels the resolution just enough to retain some spookiness. 

The concept of something or someone living inside your home without your knowledge is genuinely terrifying. Last year’s Ghost Game followed a group of thrill-seekers who got their kicks from hiding in the houses of others. Before that, in 2017, there was Freehold which told of a desperate man living within the walls of the estate agent that wronged him. These films were the start of the trend that McClarnon has tapped into, but all of those were told from the perspective of those dwelling within; here the focus is on the victims. This casts a different viewpoint on the phenomenon that is far easier to identify with, and The Other People is certainly a film that will go home with the viewer. 

McClarnon works hard to ensure that The Other People is not forgotten once the credits have rolled. To do so he crafts some horribly intense night time sequences of bodies climbing over Rachel and co whilst they are slumbering. These are exactly the type of moments that suddenly drop into your head on a midnight loo break and cause sleeplessness for the rest of the evening. Even a simple scene involving Rachel asking how all the peanut butter has vanished despite being new, causes a chill. Everyone has been in a scenario where something has been misplaced without explanation and events within The Other People will have viewers questioning how innocent their own experience was. 

With the exception of the beginning, which depicts the meet cute of Rachel and new husband William (Bryce Johnson), much of The Other People takes place within their house. Rachel especially is not really allowed to leave the property once she has moved in. William is seen away from the house, but Rachel is kept firmly in place, opening her up to maximum torment. Watching Rachel frantically try to figure out what is going on in her home is utterly compelling thanks to the stellar work of Lyndie Greenwood. Although Rachel has little set-up the audience can easily place themselves in her shoes. 

In contrast to Rachel, William is not painted in a favourable light. Not only are his extra-curricular activities problematic, his behaviour concerning the situation at home is terrible. Rather than assist and support Rachel, William belittles her concerns and chalks up his daughter’s stories of Eric and shadow people as an over-active imagination. So often within horror stories involving children, one or both parents put trust in their offspring and do everything they can to save them. In contrast, William is passive and leaves the burden of saving his child to his new wife. 

That The Other People focuses on the step-parent / child dynamic is another point of interest, McClarnon using his film to show that blood is not always thicker. Rachel and Abby are still fairly new to one another, but the bond that has formed is strong, far stronger than that seen between father and daughter and scenes between the pair are some of the best in the film. With The Other People, amidst all the icy chills of the concept, McClarnon has unknowingly started to undo the decades of step-parents are evil tropes, which is a vital element in today’s modern world of unconventional family formations. 

Another of The Other People’s strong suits is its use of the central location. The geography of houses is often overlooked in films, especially home invasion movies. The result of this tends to be a confused audience as they get lost trying to figure out what room connects to which, and where a character is at any point. This is not the case with The Other People. Shot within McClarnon’s own home, the director is intimately familiar with the structure’s layout and maximises the use of the floorplan. During sequences of characters sneaking around one another, the audience always knows where they are thanks to some diligent set-up from McClarnon. 

Inspired by real and genuinely unsettling phenomena, Chad McClarnon has created an intense haunted house movie that spins conventions on its head, bringing real world horror into the fray to ensure sleepless nights. Get ready to add checking every cupboard, drawer and closet to your bedtime routine as The Other People will have you reassessing everything about your home. 

The Other People was reviewed at FrightFest.