Nightborn: A Wholly Unusual Tale of Parenthood & Horror

Picture this: New parents Saga (Seida Haarla) and Jon (Rupert Grint) are eagerly driving down a winding forest road toward their new isolated, slightly rundown, country home - the perfect setting for some hysterical horror high jinks. Not only are they dealing with a clash of cultures – she's Finnish while Jon is British – they're dealing with even stranger events that begin to unfold after they've settled down. Overcoming these obstacles, they primarily communicate in English, conveniently adding a dash of international appeal to their chaotic lives.

Nightborn, directed by Finnish writer-director Hanna Bergholm and co-written with Ilja Rautsi, is a delightful follow-up to her well-received debut movie Hatching. Their newest work taps into a similar vein of horror and fantasy mingled with quirky family dynamic. This time around, they explore the frenzied emotions a couple experiences post-childbirth, but with a comical horror twist – their bundle of joy is a strange, bloodthirsty creature of nature.

But, is this simply the warped reality of sleep-deprived new parents or are they truly dealing with a monstrous baby? The humor is dark yet delightful, turning iconic parenting moments, from breastfeeding to a baby’s first steps, into experiences laden with equal parts cringe and giggles.

Bergholm has an unsettlingly brilliant knack for combining peculiar hilarity with puke-inducing scenes, making for some unforgettable moments, like an intense labor scene that leaves Jon showered in blood. Things escalate when Saga discovers her little munchkin, whom she refrains from associating a gender with, is covered in hair and gives her a shocking surprise during feeding time.

Their household quite literally turns into a house of horrors once their baby, lovingly named Kuura, refuses to sleep and cries ceaselessly. These antics make for the perfect horror-comedy recipe as they deal with the relentless demands of their baby, who develops a precocious nature beyond its years and an unsettling taste for blood.

Despite Saga's frequent outbursts due to exhaustion and panic, she naturally forms a bond with her mysterious baby who also shares her fascination for their enchanted forest abode. On the sidelines, Jon grapples with the common sentiment many fathers harbor, feeling like a third wheel next to the unique bond between mother and child.

Throughout the rollercoaster ride of parenthood, Bergholm brilliantly interweaves double meanings, hysteria, smattering of visual humor, and a dash of jumpscares to keep the audience glued to the screen. It’s a gorgeously shot, petrifyingly funny film boasting strong performances from Haarla and Grint, who don a new face of fear as they indulge in some truly outrageous scenes, including a tussle over their child’s disturbing snack choices.

’Nightborn’ takes things to the next level when it comes to production quality, from Peltola’s fairy-tale-esque cinematography to the uncanny living spaces of Kari Kankaanpää’s sets. They also use a fascinating mix of puppets and CGI to bring the strange but adorable Kuura to life, whom, interestingly, we hardly ever see in daylight.

Baby Kuura’s true nature remains an amusing mystery throughout. Is it a vampire? Or is it a troll perhaps? It could even be a bloodthirsty garden gnome for all we know! But that unpredictability is kind of the point. Kuura stands as an embodiment of every first timer parent's nightmares - crying night and day, inconsistent feeding habits, and generally testing every ounce of your patience. 'Nightborn' thus, fantastically highlights the horrifying, albeit comic, reality of parenting one may never have imagined.