Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Graphic
- dread-filled
- visceral
- claustrophobic
- late night horror viewing
- body horror marathon
What critics said
Critics found the film unnerving and occasionally compelling as body horror, but broadly faulted its stereotypical characters, vague themes, conventional presentation, and limited metaphorical reach.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Samantha experiences rapid, gruesome organic changes over roughly seventy-two hours.
Samantha's perception of the rape and subsequent symptoms is shaped by denial and self-deception.
Critics specifically contrasted the film's relatively conventional visual palette with more formally extreme body horror.
Samantha's lesbian relationship is entangled with her addiction, trauma, and physical deterioration.
Films like Contracted, and why
Thanatomorphose
shared body horror, grotesque physical deterioration, and escalating psychological distress
Contracted: Phase II
shared infection anxiety, transformation horror, and intimate low-budget dread
Shivers
shared visceral bodily transformation, sexual trauma, and unsettling psychological horror
The Crazies
shared disturbing infection imagery, paranoia, and claustrophobic outbreak tension
Movie Details
- Director
- Eric England
- Release Date
- 2013-07-07
- Runtime
- 84 min
- Rating
- 5.3 / 10 (560)
Cast
- Najarra Townsend
- Caroline Williams
- Katie Stegeman
- Alice Macdonald
- Matt Mercer
- Simon Barrett
- Ruben Pla
- Dave Holmes
- Celia Finkelstein
- Charley Koontz
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Philo, AMC Plus Apple TV channel, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC+ Roku Premium Channel, AMC+, Shudder, Sundance Now, Shudder Amazon Channel, Shudder Apple TV channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Contracted about?
- A recovering addict confronts an inexplicable seventy-two-hour bodily collapse after a party assault turns into a nightmare of infection and decay.
- What is Contracted like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Contracted as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Contracted violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Contracted as graphic.
- What did critics think of Contracted?
- Critics found the film unnerving and occasionally compelling as body horror, but broadly faulted its stereotypical characters, vague themes, conventional presentation, and limited metaphorical reach.
- Which films are like Contracted?
- Films with a similar feel include Thanatomorphose, Contracted: Phase II, Shivers, and The Crazies.
- How long is Contracted?
- Contracted runs 84 minutes.
- Where can I watch Contracted?
- In United States, Contracted streams on Philo, AMC Plus Apple TV channel, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC+ Roku Premium Channel, AMC+, Shudder, Sundance Now, Shudder Amazon Channel, Shudder Apple TV channel.
