Geremy Abeleda

"Outside" is not your typical Filipino-horror film. When you look at it from a deeper, more philosophical lens, it’s clear the film reflects a lot of what Nietzsche's thought on human transformation. Francis, the protagonist, battles not just external threats—the zombies—but also the internal monster: his past trauma inflicted by his father’s harsh upbringing. As Nietzsche warned, “He who fights with monsters should be careful lest he thereby become a monster.” Francis becomes the very thing he despised. His trauma, once dormant, manifests, and in his struggle for survival. He becomes emotionally detached, treating his family as if he were a heartless zombie himself. As he fights his external enemies, he becomes more like the man who shaped his trauma. In the process, he turns into a version of his father, cold and distant, almost like a zombie himself, losing his sense of empathy toward his family. Another key point Nietzsche makes is in his book Beyond Good and Evil: "If you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes into you." As Francis struggles in present with the same harsh environment that shaped him, he starts to change. This is how people’s outlooks shift when they’re exposed to intense circumstances. The more Francis contemplates his trauma, the more his repressed emotions take hold, changing him from within. This highlights how people can unconsciously embody the very pain they've tried to escape, triggered by the chaos around them. "Outside" is more than just a horror film. It is a story on the complexity of human nature and the confrontation with one's unresolved trauma. The film illustrates Nietzsche’s idea that the self is not inherently good or evil, but shaped by the conflict between inner and outer forces. As we gaze into the abyss of our suppressed fears and traumas, these buried aspects of ourselves inevitably rise to the surface. In attempting to overcome the darkness both within and in the world around us, we risk becoming consumed by it. There will always be a risk of being overtaken by what we seek to conquer. In the end, survival isn't just about overcoming external threats, but about navigating the fine line between mastery of self and losing oneself entirely.