Have you ever heard of sleep paralysis?
Sleep paralysis is a nightmare disorder where when a person is drifting off, essentially, their mind wakes up while their body is still asleep. This creates an effect where a person feels paralyzed, and dreams play out before their eyes, displaying monsters or odd scenes before them.
Are the things that they see genuinely the result of dreaming? This is a question that viewers will ask themselves after watching The Nightmare.
The 90-minute horror documentary directed by Rodney Ascher shows interviews conducted with eight people who claim to have experienced the feeling of being frozen in bed and their subsequent interactions with unknown presences. Through their stories, viewers are introduced to the world of sleep paralysis – and the eerie parallels in the encounters of its sufferers.
The Many Perspectives of The Nightmare
Whether you’d prefer stories from level-headed methodical thinkers or people who would be fashioned with a tinfoil hat in some circles and everything in between, this documentary has your perspective.
Some interviewees look at their experience through the lens of pure logic and break down their vision in as scientific a manner as possible. They speak of what they see in terms of subconscious manifestations and nothing more.
Other people describe their experiences as fact, as things they are confident were not dreams and were not the subject of their imaginations. Where this documentary does a great job is that it never signifies either way what the production’s feelings on the matter are. While they leave the possibility of paranormal involvement open for debate, they never declare it outright, letting viewers decide for themselves.
Of everyone featured, my favorite stories come from Chris C. His descriptions feel so vivid, and it appears he tries to detail his experiences in a genuine, accurate way. Every time he relays an encounter, you can see an internal battle about the validity of what he’s seen, torn between whether the things he’s seen during sleep paralysis are real or his imagination.
After hearing his stories, especially in the context of strangers and cultures and generations who have reported similar sightings of shadow men and the like, you can’t help but feel torn in the same way. Though no matter what you or anyone else believes, the documentary highlights something unquestionably real and important.
The Lack of Proper Research on Sleep Paralysis
While much of the show’s horror I will leave you to discover for yourself, this scary truth about the medical system begs coverage. As these eight people detail their journeys with sleep paralysis, they also describe their experience in seeking treatment for this terrifying sleeping disorder.
The need for education and research on this topic is clear. Many reportedly self-diagnosed from internet searches and found little to no relief by seeking medical advice or treatment. As one interviewee shares, “They tell you to change your lifestyle and eating habits without ever knowing what they are.”
7.6% of the general population will experience sleep paralysis at some point in life and it is a terrifying event for any afflicted. The way that the documentary presents so many question marks where there could be answers adds another layer of fear to the ordeal, as the fear of the unknown is one of the most primal fears a human can feel.
Highlighting the ‘Horror’ in Horror Documentary
Even in a world where science prevails, and all that exists is what we already know, The Nightmare is an unsettling watch. Horror movies do their best when it feels like it can happen to you, and no one is immune from experiencing sleep paralysis. The documentary takes this fear a step further by introducing people who only experienced sleep paralysis after they were told about it. It creates this fear that sleep paralysis is almost contagious and insinuates that the more you fear it, the more likely it is to happen to you.
Moreover, the similarities in people living with sleep paralysis create an interconnectedness between the interviewees and us. As the most grounded interviewee proclaims, “it’s Jungian.” We may have different backgrounds, beliefs, and experiences; however, there seems to be core imagery and feelings that are prevalent throughout almost every person’s experience.
This interconnectedness of the interviewees only highlights the commonality we all have with each other as human beings. Even if shadow men, hat men, and old crones are just the go-to hallucinations of the human condition, it makes us feel that much closer to experiencing it ourselves because we are preordained to experience it too. This ties the viewer, no matter their beliefs, religion, creed, or background, to every story and makes it real in our mind’s eye, even if it’s a nightmare we’ll never experience for ourselves.
The Nightmare is a creepy ride whose horror derives from the unsettling tales of various perspectives, the fear of the unknown, and the fear of experiencing it ourselves. No matter what personal conclusions a viewer may draw from it, the fact is that it creates a discussion about sleep paralysis. It is a topic for viewers to fall down an internet rabbit hole on, though be warned, because the deeper you dig, the more you may find yourself closer to the subject than you want.
Stream The Nightmare on Shudder today and let us know – what do you believe?
