Blackout(2008)
2008 · Rigoberto Castañeda · 85 min
Three people from different walks of life find themselves trapped inside a stalled elevator. What at first seems like an inconvenience rapidly escalates into a nightmare.
Horror · Thriller
5.4111 votes
TMDB score
4/5
Intensity
3/5
Gore
3/5
Stays with you
How Blackout scares
Being trapped in a tight, dark space with strangers who can't escape each other gives this a suffocating, panicky feeling that builds instead of exploding. The pace crawls at first, letting the tension and distrust between the characters simmer, before things get more frantic and physical as the situation breaks down. There's a strange, unsettling edge underneath the realism, like something isn't quite right about what's happening to them. It's more of a tense squeeze than a jump-scare ride, best for people who like claustrophobic, nerve-fraying horror.
On The Horror Database's 0–5 scare profile, Blackout rates psychological 4/5, visceral 3/5, gore 3/5, lingering effect 3/5, and overall intensity 4/5.
- Psychological: 4 of 5
- Visceral: 3 of 5
- Gore: 3 of 5
- Lingering: 3 of 5
- Intensity: 4 of 5
Slow burn vs Jump scares: 25 of 100 — leans Slow burn
Supernatural vs Real-world: 40 of 100 — leans Supernatural
Fun-scary vs Disturbing: 60 of 100 — leans Disturbing
Intensity over runtime
Shape only — no eventsReveal pacing shapeHide pacing shapeHidden by default — shows where the tension peaks and lets up.
A slow, claustrophobic squeeze that tightens steadily until it turns into a frantic, high-pressure final stretch.
Intensity across the runtime, 0 to 100: 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 4, 4, 5, 4.
How scary is Blackout?
On The Horror Database's 0–5 intensity scale, Blackout rates 4/5 — one of the more punishing watches in the catalog, building its fear through slow-burn dread rather than shocks. It works on both fronts, unsettling the mind while going for the body. Expect it to be moderately gory and genuinely disturbing. Some of it will follow you to bed, but it lets go within a day or so.
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