In this taut psychological thriller by Karyn Kusama (Girlfight, Jennifer’s Body), the tension is palpable when Will (Logan Marshall-Green, Prometheus) shows up to his ex-wife Eden (Tammy Blanchard, Into the Woods) and new husband, David’s (Michiel Huisman, “Game of Thrones“) dinner party. The pair’s tragic past haunts an equally spooky present: Amid Eden’s suspicious behavior and her mysterious house guests, Will becomes convinced that his invitation was extended with a hidden agenda. Unfolding over one dark evening in the Hollywood Hills, The Invitation blurs layers of mounting paranoia, mystery, and horror until both Will and the audience are unsure what threats are real or imagined.

Why we’re looking forward to this: The Invitation takes place almost entirely in one location which bodes well for cranking up the tension and suspense between the dinner party guests. Character and dialogue become king in these kinds of films and can be very effective at messing with the heads of viewers and warping reality.

While we here at This Is Horror love a good gore soaked extravagaza from time to time, it’s always refreshing to come across something a little more cerebral, like Cube or Fermat’s Room that pushes the horror into the psychological arena rather than the physical one.

The Invitation has been garnering good advance reviews so this is one, ahem, invitation to view that we’re certainly going to RVSP and accept.

The Invitation is in cinemas this week.

RICHARD COSGROVE