Horror Short Review: Girls Night (2017)

Girls Night is a horror short from France, created, written and directed by David Teixeira. It opens showing a woman preparing for a cheesy looking Halloween party. Plastic spiders, fake blood & apples…oh and the creepy figure standing outside her window.

Wearing a mask that has human-like features but in a garish way, this person watches her setting up before giving her a fright when she turns around.

Cut to later on & the party is in full swing, sort of. Three girls having a girls night in. The figure from earlier on is mentioned & it is implied the person ran off after being seen. After a bit too much wine, it’s time for scary stories. Specifically urban legends & the story of Bloody Mary. One of the girls gets frightened & heads over to the bathroom in annoyance.

While in there the lights go out setting in motion an eerie, tense & shocking finale.

The payoff to Girls Night is fantastic but it only works thanks to the build. While there isn’t much in the way of characters here, what they do is create an atmosphere that feels safe. You know it’s going somewhere bad but for most of the short it’s just a group of friends hanging out.

It makes the finale so much more brutal.

What also really adds to tension is the guerrilla style filming that adds a claustrophobic feel. Close ups keep the more creepy moments out of sight until the very last minute, it makes for a much more effective horror.

A very impressive effort, check it out yourself below & get ready for a sequel!