Review: Hallowarrior – Apocalyptic Survival Horror Delivers Creative Shocks Right at Home

Ben Sutak's debut brings bizarre Halloween-inspired fears, with Milly Shapiro outstanding as a naive yet resilient home defender. Pumpkin Home Alone meets Mad Max in this seasonal chiller named for Halloween rather than a cheerful greeting. A disease has wiped out most of humanity, and the 16-year-old pumpkin (Milly Shapiro) is in the best part of four years at the family home…

Ben Sottak's first feature delivers some spooky Halloween-themed scares, with the wonderful Milly Shapiro as the naïve yet resilient home defender, Pumpkin.

Monday 12 October 2026 12.00 CEST Last change on Monday 12 October 2026 12.03 CEST

Home Alone meets Mad Max in this atmospheric seasonal chiller, named for Halloween, not a happy greeting. A disease has wiped out most of humanity, leaving 16-year-old Pumpkin (Millie Shapiro) alone in her rural family home in the middle of nowhere for the better part of four years. This classic American clapboard house has always been a great, eerie, yet unsettling place to celebrate Halloween, and he decides to uphold the family tradition and do just that, broadcasting a radio broadcast to anyone who will listen, inviting them to celebrate the spooky season with him. Unfortunately, this message is received by some not-so-sane people, led by Talia (Shaneen Susamon), thus setting the stage for the proverbial fanfare.

This is Shapiro's first major role since her memorable debut as the little sister in Ari Aster's Hereditary , and she's in almost every scene here and is quite the showcase. The casting is good: Pumpkin is a fascinating presence - young and old at the same time, probably because she's fending for herself at such a key stage in her development. He hasn't had any adult guidance since he was 12 - Orshad's arrest in some ways, while he has to survive, be completely independent, and grieve his entire family alone, simultaneously makes him unusually difficult in others.

This is invaluable in a horror film. This gives the script plenty of room for him to make naive decisions that are completely justified, and also prove to be surprisingly flexible in the ways that the backstory supports the character. It gives a reasonable core and foundation to the story's more whimsical manifestations, and the excellent production design—from the cozy Halloween cabins to the endless Bates Motel aesthetic—creates a fascinating story world. Hallowarrior is the feature debut of veteran short filmmaker Ben Sutak, and on this evidence, he's probably worth keeping an eye on.

Hallowarrior is on Shudder and AMC+ from October 16th.