Kelvin Harrison Jr. stars in a scene from the movie "It Comes At Night." The Catholic News Service classification is A-III -- adults. (CNS/A24)

By Catholic News Service

Bleak psychological thriller, set in a dystopian version of rural America that’s being ravaged by an unspecified but inevitably fatal plague, in which an isolated family — dad Joel Edgerton, mom Carmen Ejogo and teen son Kelvin Harrison Jr. — gives shelter to a young couple (Christopher Abbott and Riley Keough) and their toddler (Griffin Robert Faulkner). But fear and suspicion eventually undermine the good intentions behind this arrangement, with horrifying results.

Writer-director Trey Edward Shults takes a deeply pessimistic view of human nature in a film that is well executed yet painful to watch. Maturity is required to grapple with its lifeboat ethics and tacit acceptance of euthanasia in extreme circumstances.

Some harsh gory violence, including mercy killing, an adultery theme, scenes of marital intimacy, sexual sound effects, a couple of uses of profanity, frequent rough language, several crude terms. The Catholic News Service classification is A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.

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