Starring Joel Edgerton, Christopher Abbott, Carmen Ejogo, Kelvin Harrison Jr. and Riley Keough

Directed by Trey Edward Shults

Universal, out now

In the aftermath of an apocalyptic plague, a family is trying to keep themselves isolated. But that’s not always possible…

Shults’ short horror film – running at a lean 91 minutes – isn’t concerned with the nuts and bolts of the origins of the plague that has devastated the world, but at the effect that it has on the tight-knit relationships, and the lengths to which people will go to keep their loved ones safe. It’s a claustrophobic tale that ramps up the paranoia in the final act, and leaves you wondering, as the best such tales do, quite what you’d do in those circumstances.

The director gets strong performances from all his cast, with Edgerton in particular credible even in the film’s more horrifying moments – not all of which, by any means, involve the body horror of the effects of the disease. If you enjoyed Terry Nation’s Survivors – and in particular, the more harrowing way in which the Big Finish team have taken the 1970s series in their audio continuation of the show in recent years – then chances are you’ll enjoy this.

Verdict: A harrowing post-apocalyptic tale. 7/10

Paul Simpson