--- title: "It Ends: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/it-ends/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/it-ends" critics_score: 74 critics_reviews: 14 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # It Ends (2026): what the critics said Critics' score 74 from 14 reviews: 11 positive, 3 mixed, 0 negative. Most critics like It Ends, and the praise clusters in two places: the premise and the cast. Reviewers keep returning to the economy of Alexander Ullom’s set-up, a group of young people on a road that never ends, and to how much dread it wrings from so little money. The unknown actors are singled out again and again, for their chemistry and for the way the script establishes them through ordinary banter before things turn. Several critics read the film as a portrait of post-college futility and take that seriously. The reservations are about what happens once the idea is in place. The AV Club and The Hollywood Reporter both find it repetitive, the premise stretched past what it can carry, and Time Out wonders whether it would have suited a short. IndieWire, warmer, still thinks the journey lacks a destination. The spread is wide, from the year’s-best enthusiasm of The Guardian to a middling C, with no outright pans. ## Los Angeles Times — Amy Nicholson Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 19 August 2026. This inventive and inspiring microbudget debut marks a standout for young directors with its otherworldly endless-road premise. It singles out the cast of unknowns and the philosophical exploration of living a meaningful life for praise. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2026-08-19/it-ends-review-alexander-ullom-phinehas-yoon-akira-jackson-noah-toth-mitchell-cole-horror) ## The Guardian Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 20 August 2026. The critic calls the micro-budget horror gripping and ranks it among the year’s best films. They single out the stellar performances by the gen-Z cast and the expertly crafted sense of dread in its time-loop premise. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/20/it-ends-horror-movie-review) ## RogerEbert.com — Peyton Robinson Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 21 August 2026. The debut is a troubling yet honest surrealist psychological drama that confidently stakes its value in living as a radical act amid Gen-Z existential anxiety. It singles out the screenplay's blend of funny banter and dreadful exchanges for praise. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/it-ends-alex-ullom-horror-movie-review-2026) ## IndieWire — Esther Zuckerman Rating B-. 20 August 2026. The critic calls the film a promising but underdeveloped indie horror movie that cleverly sets up an existential Gen Z riff on Sartre with unnerving moments, yet ultimately disappoints as the journey lacks a satisfying destination. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/it-ends-indie-horror-movie-review-1235101708/) ## Slant Magazine — Chris Barsanti Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 16 August 2026. The critic describes the film as a neatly crafted if somewhat under-imagined inquiry into a Twilight Zone scenario with tight worldbuilding and philosophical undertones, but notes it falls short of being mind-blowing due to underdeveloped characters and human elements. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/it-ends-review-alex-ullom/) ## Variety — Siddhant Adlakha Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 9 March 2025. Festival review. The brilliant existential road thriller for and by Gen Z is a streamlined low-budget genre piece whose pulpy flourishes reveal something more tonally surprising. It singles out the quick, economical character establishment through banal conversation for praise. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2025/film/reviews/it-ends-review-1236331979/) ## Time Out — Elizabeth Weitzman Rating 3/5. 19 August 2026. The film is an existential metaphor about young people trapped in a looping road with no exit, using zombies as a minor element in a non-traditional horror. It can be a tough, repetitive watch that might suit a short better, but the unknown actors bring depth to their characters and the visuals are strong. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/it-ends-review-2026) ## The AV Club — Monica Castillo Rating C. 17 August 2026. The critic praises the strong, terror-inducing premise of the liminal road trip horror but finds the film runs out of gas as the monotony wears thin, turning into a bloated Twilight Zone episode that stretches its limited scope too far. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/it-ends-review) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Jordan Mintzer Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 7 March 2025. Festival review. The critic finds the debut feature a well-crafted conceptual horror film with strong direction and pacing that sustains tension in a limited setting, but notes it becomes repetitive and fails to fully develop its characters or payoff once the premise is established. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/it-ends-review-1236157544/) ## The Playlist — Chase Hutchinson Rating A-. 14 March 2025. Festival review. The critic finds it a fascinating, effectively haunting debut that marks the director as one to watch, giving life to the dread of young adulthood through its existential nightmare on an unending road, praising its well-shot, written, and acted qualities especially for a first feature. [Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/it-ends-review-the-kids-are-not-alright-in-alex-ulloms-evocative-existential-horror-debut-sxsw-20250314/) ## Den of Geek — David Crow Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 18 August 2026. The critic praises the film's clever, economical premise of a never-ending road trip into cosmic horror, highlighting its inventive use of limited resources and strong character dynamics. They note it effectively blends horror with existential themes and leaves a lingering impact. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/it-ends-review-neon-cosmic-horror/) ## Collider — Matthew Donato Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 25 March 2025. Festival review. The critic finds the film a winning experiment in existential road-trip horror that thrives on ambiguity and the characters' shared anxieties about post-college life. The small ensemble's chemistry and the film's focus on impermanence over conventional scares are singled out for praise. [Read the review](https://collider.com/it-ends-review/) ## /Film — BJ Colangelo Rating 8/10. 21 August 2026. The critic praises the film's meditation on existential angst and the bleak endless journey of adulthood, singling out its compelling execution of a simple thought experiment grounded in recognizable reality. [Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/2239907/it-ends-2026-movie-review/) ## The Wrap Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 20 August 2026. The critic views Alexander Ullom’s debut as a vital, unnerving horror film that captures a generation’s sense of futility through its central metaphor of an endless road from which the characters cannot escape. It singles out the film’s profound simplicity in exploring themes of meaninglessness, whether one should keep going or give up, as its most powerful element. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/it-ends-review-alexander-ullom-neon/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/it-ends.md