New to UK and US cinemas from today is the home invasion horror movie, The Strangers: Chapter 1. The film – directed by Renny Harlin – stars Madelaine Petsch and Froy Gutierrez, and follows the story of a young couple who become terrorised while staying overnight in an Airbnb.
In the movie, Maya and Ryan are on an extensive road trip in the US to celebrate their fifth anniversary, when they decide to take a short break. After arriving in the town of Venus, Oregon, they pull into a diner and grab something to eat.
After finishing up at the diner, they attempt to leave only to discover there is a problem with their car. A local mechanic offers to fix the problem, but he requires a replacement part which won’t be available until the next day.
Forced to stay in town for the night, Maya and Ryan book a local Airbnb which is situated in a remote location in the woods. They then check in, where they hope to spend a relaxing night together before they can continue their road trip.
However, shortly after arriving in their temporary accommodation, there is a knock at the door. Soon after, Maya and Ryan find themselves the victims of a seemingly senseless attack from a trio of masked strangers.
Now, I know what you’re thinking: ‘Haven’t we already done this film before, on at least a couple of occasions?’ Well, the answer is yes, we have done this film before. Despite its title, The Strangers: Chapter 1 is not the first entry in The Strangers movie series – there are other Strangers movies in existence.
However, for the purpose of avoiding any confusion, let’s make this clear now: The Strangers: Chapter 1 is the first entry in a NEW trilogy of Strangers movies. Chapter 1 is here now, while Chapters 2 and 3 will follow at a later date.
And for even further clarification, all three movies have already been shot and are in the can. Principal photography wrapped on this new horror trilogy in late 2022, so regardless of what you, I, or anyone else thinks of this new movie, the next two are on their way.
Is this a good thing? Well, for Lionsgate Films it presumably is, as the studio has new films to show to paying audiences.
As for us, well, I’m not so sure. If the studio hadn’t already spent money on this trilogy of tales, I’d be inclined to tell them to abandon the idea now – at least based on this first entry anyway.
The Strangers: Chapter 1 is slow, dull, and very, very boring. For a film which runs a mere 91-minutes, it sure does drag things out and it’s kind of ‘meh’.
For those wondering whether this is a whole new take on The Strangers story, or if this is a straight up remake of the 2008 film(?), it falls somewhere in between. The Strangers: Chapter 1 plays many of the same notes as the original, and often in the same order, but it does do things differently too.
However, whether it is copying the original or doing its own thing, you can’t help but feel it is a.) a bit pointless, and b.) a bit rubbish. It’s pointless because this has all been done before, and not that long ago, and it’s rubbish because this all feels like a crappier version, which makes stupid choices.
The original film worked well because the couple in the 2008 movie arrived at a house in the middle of the night and were attacked by strangers. It all seemed kind of random and unexpected, which is something which in itself is very frightening.
In this new movie, the central couple, Maya and Ryan, also arrive at a house in the middle of the night, but not before they have interacted with a number of the locals (at the diner, the mechanics yard, etc). All of the people they interact with before they arrive at the Airbnb are arseholes, and even the one nice person they speak to seems highly suspicious.
So, before they have even gone to the Airbnb it is clear everyone living in the town of Venus is a hostile dick, who should not be trusted. As such, we the audience should expect bad things to happen because all the signs are there!
By making a change in the story, showing us the townsfolk, and putting us on guard at the very start of the movie, it now lessens the impact of what follows. It’s a small tweak, but it has a significant impact to the level of terror, and is an example of why this film feels inferior.
So, is the small tweak the film’s big problem? No, the film is rubbish anyway.
The big problem with The Strangers: Chapter 1 is what I’ve mentioned above – it’s dull and boring. It takes too long to get going, it’s very bland, and we’ve seen it all before.
The Strangers: Chapter 1 fails to add anything interesting or imaginative into the mix. It plays like a weak re-tread of the past, and still expects audiences to be invested.
The masked strangers themselves also become less menacing this time around, and they are quite irritating as the movie goes on. They spend far too much time standing around in the shadows, not really doing anything, and man, is it tedious.
And it’s also really odd, because if you were a knife-wielding maniac who broke into the home of Maya and Ryan, I guarantee you would want to bump Ryan off within two minutes of meeting him. He is a complete and utter douche, who frankly deserves everything he gets, and I doubt any court in the world would convict the strangers for attacking him.
Maya on the other hand is OK(ish), and she deserves better. Although, that said, she’s been with Ryan five years and hasn’t tried to do him in once, so maybe she’s just as bad.
Either way, the masked strangers are annoying, and so is Ryan. And when these characters take up most of the screen time, it’s difficult to find many positives in the rest of the film.
I can chuck a couple of positives out there, such as the cinematography being good, and the tone and atmosphere being right, but that’s about it. The film doesn’t do much to inspire or excite, and in all honesty it feels like it simply just exists.
If you’ve never watched The Strangers, then do yourself a favour, and watch that film instead. It is a better version of the story, and it is not pointless like The Strangers: Chapter 1.
I guess Lionsgate would argue The Strangers: Chapter 1 isn’t actually pointless, because it will lead into two sequels, but I’m not sure this is a strong enough reason for its existence. Even if the two sequels take this series in a drastically different direction, I’ve still had to sit through 91 minutes of a film I’ve effectively seen before, and this all feels like a waste of my time.
If you’re completely new to The Strangers movies, then The Strangers: Chapter 1 might prove perfectly fine, and you may want to see what happens next. For everyone else, you’re simply being resold old rope.
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