6/10This film has a basic premise
- to frighten the living daylights out of its audience. It's supposedly
based on true events (like every other movie these days), as a
voice of doom informs us amid thunderous sound effects in the
opening credits; thus setting the mood for the simple plot. A
couple returning from a wedding reception to an isolated house,
are faced with a home invasion by three psychos of the worst kind.
Hopefully it could only happen in the USA
The creepy trailer
for The Strangers
To keep the tension building as long as possible, we learn James
Hoyt (Scott Speedman) is the sad rejected suitor of attractive
Kirsten McKay (Liv Tyler). So there’s some scenes setting
a lovey-dovey tone with rose petals, champagne and a diamond ring,
while the sound track mumbles dark thoughts. However, we the audience
are well aware dire deeds are in store, since an early scene in
the film is a flash forward to the aftermath of the night’s
terror.
The couple unwisely answer the door at 4.a.m. to
a strange girl who asks “is Tamara here?” then wanders
off. Things get out of hand as the house is stormed by ever louder,
frightening knocking and strange noises, (think Robert Wise’s
The Haunting) and finally a masked raider makes a sneaky
entry. He looks an escapee from The Orphanage with a
canvas bag over his head. From then on it’s a deathly game
of hide-and-seek as three masked intruders (two girls and a man)
prey on the young couple without mercy. There are moments reminiscent
of The Shining with that axe chopping through the door.
The intruders seem to be possessed of supernatural powers appearing
and disappearing in an alarming manner. Creepy stuff.
The director milks the suspense for all its worth,
holding Kirsten in dark rooms and cupboards as long as possible
with the masked man breathing heavily nearby. Close-ups prove
effective as you never know what’s just outside the frame.
Salvation looks like it's turned up in the guise of Hoyt’s
unfortunate friend Mike (Glenn Howerton) but sadly he’s
not long for this world. The situation degenerates further as
James is hurt and Kirsten has to fend for herself in a spooky
garden shed with a ham radio. The last shot in the film is pure
Stephen King.
Seriously, much of the material beggars belief,
although inspired by a home attack that took place at the Hoyt
residence in 2005. The events here are obviously elaborated for
the sole purpose of making a suspense thriller. The movie certainly
has shocks and thrills stretching suspense to breaking point.
On this level it works very well, even if some of the technique
is heavy handed and not especially original.
Girls
may not want to go home alone after seeing this frightening essay
in senseless brutality. There's a particularly disturbing line
when Kirsten asks her heartless tormentors “Why are you
doing this to us?”; the girl answers “You were home”.
There’s a neat ironic twist with two boys and their Salvation
Leaflets. Much of the action involves Liv Tyler (The Incredible
Hulk) as she battles the inevitable with grit and determination.
Scott Speedman (Anamorph) is also solidly put upon as
James ‘disappointed in love’. Neither parts are heavy
in dialogue though both actors give satisfactory performances.
Since the intruders are masked (the girls' masks particularly
unsettling), and speak little, there’s hardly an Academy
Award heading their way. The director cleverly chooses to allow
only the briefest glimpse of their faces which heightens the enigma.
Helmed by young Bryan Bertino doing his first film
on a tight budget, he manages to build suspense as much as the
situation will allow and then a tad more. His cinematographer
helps him from the opening shuddering tracking shots to the darkened
rooms it’s a well photographed in the gothic mode. Perhaps
more than anything the sound track’s worked overtime to
produce many shock moments, while a reoccurring motive of LP records
and a player develop a further sense unease. Bertino certainly
has a talent for the horror/thriller genre and should be worth
watching in future.
Sure it’s a potboiler and not for the feint
hearted but it does what it sets out to do. In the manner of Panic
Room it keeps you right on the edge of your seat, just don’t
expect a hearts and flowers ending.
Girls
may not want to go home alone after seeing this frightening essay
in senseless brutality. There's a particularly disturbing line
when Kirsten asks her heartless tormentors “Why are you
doing this to us?”; the girl answers “You were home”.
There’s a neat ironic twist with two boys and their Salvation
Leaflets. Much of the action involves Liv Tyler (The Incredible
Hulk) as she battles the inevitable with grit and determination.
Scott Speedman (Anamorph) is also solidly put upon as
James ‘disappointed in love’. Neither parts are heavy
in dialogue though both actors give satisfactory performances.
Since the intruders are masked (the girls' masks particularly
unsettling), and speak little, there’s hardly an Academy
Award heading their way. The director cleverly chooses to allow
only the briefest glimpse of their faces which heightens the enigma.