Round the Decay 2025 Movie Review
The town of Newport’s Valley is hiding a terrible secret. Brought to life by a greedy settler, a monstrous being consumes everything in its path with rage and destruction. A group of outsiders bans together to rid the town of the Wrexsoul — but they soon find out the town leaders have more to answer for in Round the Decay.
Said to draw elements from Pumpkinhead and The Descent, Round the Decay gives indie folk horror the life it has always deserved. It is primed for the silver screen with well-developed characters and a monster fit to haunt your dreams.
Starting out with a chase scene and origin of the Wrexsoul, every person’s backstory is skillfully woven together in one night of terror. Kenzie Rhodes (Victoria Mirror) is brought back when her fiancé is killed years earlier. Innkeeper Bart (Cary Hite) tries to better the community, while town leader Gregory (Jamie Dufault) works silently to hide the town’s secret. Camper Aida (Alexis Safoyan) and her friends have a deadly encounter with the creature that ends in a lot of bloodshed. There are so many people to meet in Newsport’s Valley, but writer/director Adam Newman made damn sure none of Round the Decay was confusing or out of place.
And how could it be? A centuries-old mystery has been preserved by those in power to keep those in power. A sleepy town filled with memories is exactly what Newsport’s Valley is — if it were someone’s nightmare. Round the Decay manages to turn all of these folky tropes into an exciting ride with something new around every corner. A creepy cave? Got it. Bloody-gushing chase scenes and gore? It’s all there. Sinister plots with untrustworthy locals? Yes. And it even has a Sam/Dean Winchester-type character to add that extra punch.
Of course, the standout of Round the Decay was the Wrexsoul, played by Rachel Pizzolato. A frightening creature design, the Wrexsoul embodies everything that made it in the first place: gnarly, toothed mouth for consuming flesh; fast running and leaping prowess; yells, groans, and mimicking those she’s killed. Fantastic!
Round the Decay has a little bit of everything, from funny quips to chilling moments and one hell of a story. It is somehow a comfort movie while still bringing fresh takes on folk horror. Made as a way to leverage demand for indie flicks doing major theater runs, Round the Decay the missing link. Indie horror is always a safe bet and something horror audiences crave. What better way to break the cycle of tired remakes and money-grabs than to feature a cursed being on the big screen… because as they say in the movie, “Only monsters can kill monsters.”
