April looks to be a jam packed month for film releases. Particularly, if you are a fan of smaller horror releases. One of the horror films to look out for next month isThe Aviarywritten and directed byChris CullariandJennifer Raite. To promote its April 29 release,Saban Filmshas dropped a new trailer and poster for the film that showcases what to expect from this cult centric story.
The plot for the film is as followed:
Malin Akerman and Chris Messina star in the twisted journey of two women’s desperate flee to escape the clutches of Skylight, an insidious cult. Lured in by the promise of “freedom” in the isolated desert campus called “The Aviary”, Jillian (Akerman) and Blair (Lorenzo Izzo) join forces to escape in hopes of real freedom. Consumed by fear and paranoia, they can’t shake the feeling that they are being followed by the cult’s leader, Seth (Messina), a man as seductive as he is controlling. The more distance the pair gains from the cult, the more Seth holds control of their minds. With supplies dwindling and their senses failing, Jillian and Blair are faced with a horrifying question: how do you run from an enemy who lives inside your head?
The trailer for the film starts off with an eerie shot ofMalin Akerman’s Jillian in a trance-like state before we hear a mysterious man’s voice telling her to “wake up”. Then a second later that voice cuts toLorenza Izzo’s Blair telling Jillian to “wake up”. The scene then transitions to Jillian waking up in broad daylight, seemingly alone, before we see the pair of women frantically running away from something off-screen in a completely separate scene. It is here where the voiceover for the trailer starts talking about the two women’s past. We get the first mention of the character Seth played byBirds of Prey’sChris Messinawith the two talking about Seth’s power that still resides over them. The trailer then takes us through Jillian and Blair’s dynamic with the two arguing over whether the Skylight was a cult or not. Blair is seemingly in denial while Jillian firmly believes it was. We then learn that they are making a two-day journey through the desert to supposed safety. Their destination is a town called Gallup.
The horror for the trailer starts to set in as Blair sees a vision of an unknown woman, they start hearing noises like a phone ringing, and having other visions seen off-screen. From here more story points are revealed like Jillian taking Seth’s laptop so that she can incriminate and expose him. The two then find some kind of civilization, but quickly realize they have been going in the wrong direction. Tensions rise as Jillian starts hallucinating more visions of Seth. This leads to an unsettling scene of Blair confronting Jillian and accusing her of talking like Seth. In the final portion of the trailer, Blair and Jillian go down a rabbit hole of not knowing who or what to trust with a lot of interesting imagery to back the creepiness up. We see things like a branding on Jillian’s back, Blair screaming on the top of her lungs, and Jillian being helplessly dragged off a cliff side. In all that overwhelming madness, the trailer ends with the haunting line, “You’re not Seth. You’re the devil.”
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The new poster also doubles down on the psychological horror with Blair on one side and Jillian on the other. Both of them are visually fractured and split in two. The only thing separating the pair is Seth who is seen in the middle of the image looming over the desert backdrop. Just like in the trailer, he is always in the back of our minds.
From the trailer and description,The Aviarylooks to be a trippy psychological horror thriller about brainwashing, not being able to trust your own mind, and survival. There have been a few excellent cult centric horror films lately like last year’sThe Son. This anxiety inducing film looks to add another emotionally scary tale to this sub-genre with its color soaked haunting imagery, disturbing atmosphere, and committed performances.The Aviarycomes to theaters and VOD on June 30, 2025. You can watch the new trailer and view the new poster down below.
