History Film / TheRitual

* SurvivorsGuilt: After Luke fails to assist Robert during the robbery, he is plagued by nightmares that stem from his guilt.

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: Luke manages to get out of the forest alive and burns down the village sacrificing people to the monster for good measure. However, he's the only one who made it out alive due to Phil, Hutch and Dom having been killed by the monster. Said monster is also still very much alive. Considering that the trek was due to honouring their friend Robert, who was killed in a liquor robbery that Luke feels utter guilt for, he's likely feeling much worse by the end.]]

** Inverted in the case of the creature, [[spoiler:which cannot leave the woods]].

* DwindlingParty: One by one, each member of the group dies, until [[spoiler: Luke is left as the {{sole survivor}}.]]

* FinalGirl: [[spoiler:Gender-inverted with Luke, who survives to the end.]]

* SurvivorsGuilt: After Luke fails to assist Robert during the robbery, he is plagued by nightmares that stem from his guilt. [[spoiler: It's likely much, much worse by [[FinalGirl the end of the film]] ]]...

* [[HeWasRightThereAllAlong There All Along]]: One shot holds on the group as they trek up a hill. [[spoiler: The monster blends in with the trees so well that you only notice it once it steps out of view, offering only a brief glimpse of...''something''. The fact that it happens [[DaylightHorror in broad daylight]] makes it even worse.]]

* SceneryPorn: The film has quite a few gorgeous shots of the Scandinavian landscape.

* BadBoss: Even the creature’s own followers aren’t safe from it’s wrath when they fail to protect the mummified bodies of the older followers.

* AnimalisticAbomination: The thing that lives in the woods [[spoiler: possesses a shape not unlike a gigantic elk. However, she also has what appears to be a headless human torso for a skull with human arms coming from where its legs would be, antlers sprouting form where its arms would be and a vaguely human-like head hidden in the shadows within a shroud where the torso's crouch is. When she rises on her hindlegs, she also reveals a second pair of human-like hands near her hips.]]

* OurMonstersAreWeirder: It doesn't get much weirder than [[spoiler: the body of a [[AnimalisticAbomination massive stag]] but with a headless human torso for a head, with antlers for hands, arms for legs, and a black void with glowing eyes at crotch height.]]

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: Luke manages to get out of the forest alive and burns down the village sacrificing people to the monster for good measure. However, he's the only one who made it out alive due to Phil, Hutch and Dom having been killed by the monster. Said monster is also still very much alive.]]

* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler: It's hard to feel any sympathy for the villagers as they get slaughtered by the monster, given that they've been sacrificing people to it in exchange for immortality.]]

* FourLegsGoodTwoLegsBetter: [[spoiler:The monster spends most of her time walk on all fours like an animal; however near the end she stands bipedally in a distinctly human fashion]].

* OnlySaneMan: Luke, who is strongly against the shortcut.

* FourLegsGoodTwoLegsBetter: [[spoiler:The monster spends most of her time walk on all fours like an animal however near the end she stands bipedally in a distinctly human fashion]].

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: Luke manages to get out of the forest alive and burns down the village sacrificing people to the monster for good measure. However, he's the only one who made it out alive due to Phil, Hutch and Dom having been killed by the monster.]]

* AnimalisticAbomination: The thing that lives in the woods [[spoiler: possesses a shape not unlike a gigantic elk. However, she also has what appears to be a headless human torso for a skull with human arms coming from where its legs would be, antlers sprouting form where its arms should and vaguely human-like head hidden in the shadows within a shroud where the torso's crouch is. When she rises on her hindlegs, she also reveals a second pair of human-like hands near her hips.]]

* AnimalisticAbomination: The thing that lives in the woods [[spoiler: possesses a shape not unlike a gigantic elk. However, she also has a barren goat {{skull for a head}} with human arms coming from where its cheeks would be, and vaguely human-like head hidden in the shadows within the larger skull. When she rises on her hindlegs, she also reveals a second pair of human-like hands near her hips.]]

* FacingDeathWithDignity: [[spoiler:Subverted. Dom takes on a brave face after the villagers torture him and he becomes aware he will not survive. Only then to still scream when facing the creature, though it first appearing in the form of his wife Gayle didn't help his fortitude.]]

Former college friends Luke, Phil, Hutch, and Dom go backpacking in the Swedish wilderness to honor Robert, who was killed in a liquor store robbery. However, after Dom becomes badly injured, the four decide to take a shortcut through the woods. When they discover an elk hanging gutted from a tree, they begin to believe there may be more than bears in this forest…

* DwindlingParty: One by one, each member of the group dies, until [[spoiler: Luke is left as the only survivor.]]

* SurvivorsGuilt: After Luke fails to assist Robert during the robbery, he is plagued by nightmares that stem from his guilt. [[spoiler: It's likely much, much worse by [[FinalGirl the end of the film]]...

* EyeScream: The creature plucks out [[spoilers: the eyes of one of the villagers, though whether that's for allowing the mummified worshipers to burn or for daring to look upon Moder is unclear.]]

* [[HeWasRightThereAllAlong There All Along]]: One shot holds on the group as they treck up a hill. [[spoiler: The monster blends in with the trees so well that you only notice it once it steps out of view, offering only a brief glimpse of...''something''. The fact that it happens [[DaylightHorror in broad daylight makes it even worse.]] ]]

* GodsNeedPrayerBadly: [[spoiler: Strongly implied with the monster's motivations. After it kills its living congregation for failing to protect the mummified worshippers, it deliberately misses several chances to kill Luke, instead trying to intimidate him into prostrating himself to its glory.]]

* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: [[spoiler:This is the creature's primary way of killing her victims, by impaling them onto tree branches.]]

* KillItWithFire: [[spoiler: Luke burns down a room containing moving mummified corpses, killing some of the villagers.]]
* NighInvulnerability: Played with. [[spoiler: The creature ''can'' be harmed, as seen when Luke attacks her with an axe at the end of the movie, although the wound doesn't slow her down too much. She also shrugged off a shotgun wound.]]

* SurvivorsGuilt: After Luke fails to assist Robert during the robbery, he is plagued by nightmares that stem from his guilt.

* AllThereInTheManual: [[WordOfGod According to director David Bruckner]], [[spoiler:the creature is female, and said to be named Moder in the book. But in the film, the pagans dare not speak her name.]]