“Grind”

Universally relatable stories often make the best films, and the anthology horror movie “Grind” is for anyone who has ever had a job they hated (in other words, all of us). Directed by Brea Grant, Chelsea Stardust, and Ed Dougherty (and co-written by Grant and Dougherty), the film takes the frustrations of modern work life and turns them into a weird, bloody, sometimes hilarious horror anthology that takes aim squarely at modern workplace culture.

The format works well for the storytelling here, as it’s structured into several different stories that eventually connect into one larger narrative. Each segment focuses on a different corner of office life, from the exhausting hustle culture of an MLM scheme to the endless monotony of food delivery gigs. There’s also a segment about a content moderator dealing with the dark side of the internet, and another centered on workers at a very familiar-feeling coffee shop trying to unionize. Each story plays with horror and sci-fi elements while poking fun at the absurdity of corporate culture and the way workers are often treated as disposable.

The fun of it all is how the movie exaggerates these everyday job frustrations into full-blown horror situations. Anyone who’s dealt with a bad boss, pointless meetings, toxic work environments, or the soul sucking repetition of certain jobs will probably find themselves laughing a little at how close some of this feels to real life. Grant and Dougherty clearly have a lot of fun taking shots at the nonsense so prevalent in corporate culture and the growing gig economy.

The tone is very playful with its genre influences. It jumps between horror, science fiction, and comedy pretty easily, often deconstructing familiar tropes along the way. Some of the humor is sharp, especially when the film starts taking shots at corporate jargon and the infuriating massive wealth inequality that shapes the modern workplace. There are also some surprisingly solid visual effects for an indie project, and when the movie leans into the horror side, it delivers plenty of fun (and bloody) moments.

Like most anthology movies though, it’s a bit uneven. Some segments are way stronger than others, and a couple of them feel like they end just as they’re getting interesting. The bigger story connecting everything together is also tied up pretty quickly at the end, but it doesn’t matter all that much. The stories move fast enough that even the weaker ones don’t drag the movie down.

In the grand scheme of things, “Grind” certainly won’t go down as one of the all-time great horror anthologies, but it’s clever and a ton of fun. It’s funny, a little messy, and bloody enough to keep horror fans satisfied, especially if you enjoy taking a ride into the darker side of the daily grind.

By: Louisa Moore