I love it when a film takes place almost entirely within one confined setting, be that a train (I’m thinking Snowpiercer and Train to Busan) or a futuristic cryogenic pod (Oxygen is my only example of this very specific setting!). In the world of TV this is known as a bottle episode and it’s a common method for cutting costs (and sometimes ramping up dramatic tension)…
One of the more common confined settings in films is an apartment building, which is a big enough space to allow for some variety, but still small enough to give that restricted feeling. Here are five sci-fi and/or horror films (plus a few honorable mentions…) that make excellent use of the apartment block setting.
Dredd (2012)
In the dystopian world of Dredd, most of the planet has become a wasteland and humanity now lives in mega-cities. Rigid law enforcer Judge Dredd (Karl Urban) and rookie Cassandra Anderson (Olivia Thirlby) are called to a murder investigation at a massive tower block called Peach Trees. But the resident drug lord, known as Ma-Ma (Lena Headey), doesn’t take too kindly to the long arm of the law, so she locks down the building and orders the deaths of the duo.
Dredd and Anderson’s fight for justice and survival is a gory thrill ride. Through Anderson’s eyes, the violence seems absolutely brutal, but for Dredd, it’s just another day on the job. Visually, the entire film looks spectacular, but I’ve got to give a special shout-out to the stylized shots which showcase Slo-Mo, a drug that makes the taker feel like time is moving in slow motion. Also, props to Karl Urban for keeping the helmet on; you might think having most of his face covered would limit his performance, but his mouth-acting gets an A+ from me!
Attack the Block (2011)
Set on a South London council estate, Attack the Block begins with Moses (a pre-Star Wars John Boyega) and his gang mugging Samantha (a pre-Doctor Who Jodie Whittaker). A meteorite then falls from the sky, unleashing dangerous aliens that force Sam and the gang to work together as their block of flats comes under attack.
I love the black-furred and neon-fanged design of the aliens, hilariously described by Pest (Alex Esmail) as “big gorilla wolf motherfuckers!” Despite the film having a low budget, the effects used to bring the creatures to life look great. Along with compelling characters and interesting aliens, writer and director Joe Cornish also offers up a sharply witty script that features social commentary on poverty and racism along with plenty of action. Attack the Block is an absolute blast from start to finish, being by turns thrilling, funny, and insightful.
Evil Dead Rise (2023)
Lee Cronin’s Evil Dead Rise opens in classic Evil Dead style at a cabin in the woods, with a girl becoming a Deadite by unknown means and attacking her friends. We then flashback to one day earlier, when Beth (Lily Sullivan) goes to visit her estranged sister Ellie (Alyssa Sutherland) and Ellie’s three kids at their soon-to-be-demolished L.A. apartment building.
The family dynamics are a little difficult to navigate, but things go from emotionally tense to physically perilous when the building is rocked by an earthquake, revealing a hidden vault under the parking garage. Eldest sibling Danny (Morgan Davies) decides to explore and finds some old phonogragh records and a flesh-bound book, through which he accidentally summons a supernatural entity that possesses his mom.
As might be expected from an Evil Dead film, it’s not long before the characters are drenched in blood and gore—just thinking about the cheese grater scene makes me shudder! Things don’t get quite as campy as when Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell teamed up in previous installments, but the horror continues to escalate until the film reaches a truly unhinged finale.
Sting (2024)
Sting opens with a fiery meteor streaking through the sky to the ’60s sounds of “What A Way To Die” by The Pleasure Seekers. It crash-lands in a dilapidated apartment building, but instead of just being a small piece of space rock, it’s actually a gooey pod that hatches an extra-terrestrial spider. 12-year-old Charlotte (Alyla Browne) loves spiders—she’s even writing a spider-themed comic book with her stepdad Ethan (Ryan Corr)—so she scoops the arachnid into a jar and names her new pet Sting.
It quickly becomes evident that Sting is growing considerably faster and larger than Earth spiders, so insects aren’t going to satiate it for long. Arachnophobes will want to give this movie a miss, but the big spider scares are balanced out by the film’s comedic tone, so those with only a minor aversion to eight legs might be able to handle it. Sting essentially feels like a fun, modern take on the classic campy ’50s creature feature.
Infested (2023)
If your tolerance for seeing spiders on screen is slightly higher, then you have to check out Sébastien Vaniček’s Infested, which has a totally different feel to Sting. Whereas Sting comes with a dose of humor to lighten the scares, Infested is pure horror from start to finish.
The film kicks off with a group of men capturing spiders in the dessert, one of which is later bought by Kaleb (Théo Christine) to add to the collection of exotic animals that he keeps in his bedroom. It doesn’t take long for the unusual spider to break free and start multiplying, essentially turning the apartment building—the architecturally striking Picasso’s Arenas in the suburbs of Paris—into a huge spider nest.
Infested takes the creepy-crawly scares of Arachnophobia (1990) and dials them up to 11. There are certain heebie-jeebie-inducing scenes in this film that made me physically squirm! While I must admit that I didn’t love the ending, that doesn’t take away from the adrenaline rush that is the rest of the film.
Honorable Mentions
I can’t help myself from including just a few extra recommendations that I think you should check out if you like this kind of confined apartment building setting:
The Raid (2011) doesn’t make the main list because there’s no SFF element, but it’s a brilliant film. Set in Indonesia, it follows a team of cops as they raid an apartment building that’s the home base of a drug lord (yes, this is a similar setup to Dredd, but the films feel very different!). The Raid (also released as The Raid: Redemption) showcases some of the most brutal martial arts I’ve ever seen, and lead actor and co-fight choreographer Iko Uwais deserves to be a bigger name.
Apartment buildings are also a popular setting for zombie films, with survivors finding themselves trapped inside by undead hoards outside. A few of my favorites include #Alive (2020) from Korea, REC (2007) from Spain, and The Night Eats the World (2018) from France.
Finally, Sweet Home is an apocalyptic Korean TV series that’s set within the walls of an apartment block. In the first season, Hyun-su (Song Kang) and his neighbors become trapped inside when people start mutating into bizarre monsters. The special effects are sometimes a bit ropey, but it’s overall a lot of fun.
Have I missed out on any other SFF or horror movies that trap their characters in an apartment building? Leave your favorites in the comments below!
