In 2008, American Filmmaker Bryan Bertino splashed onto the genre scene with his sleeper hit, The Strangers. A home invasion Horror film that had no right being as good as it was, with the acting chops of stars like Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman to ground the story in a relatable fashion, The Strangers has become a cult classic for horror lovers. Ten years after the release of Bertino’s film, Johannes Roberts revisited the world with 2018’s The Strangers: Prey at Night. Was it a sequel that lived up to the legacy of the original? Far from it. Was it a fun, cheesy midnight movie you can appreciate under the suitable substance? Sure. Now in 2024 we have The Strangers: Chapter 1, directed by Renny Harlin (A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master, 1988, Die Hard 2 1990). Quite a random choice to tackle not just one film, but a soon-to-be trilogy of a pretty celebrated independent intellectual property. Nevertheless, it’s here. And you might be asking yourself, was this necessary? No. No, it was not.
Released in theaters on May 17th through Lionsgate, The Strangers: Chapter 1 opens with a man running through the forest as our masked assailants chase him. Since it is a Horror movie, surely you can figure out what happens to this poor victim once the killers catch up to him. Here’s a hint… it involves an axe. We then focus on our two protagonists, Maya (Madelaine Petsch: Riverdale series, Polaroid 2019) and Ryan (Froy Gutierrez: Teen Wolf series, Cruel Summer series), as they drive from New York City to the Pacific Northwest to begin a new life in Oregon. Maya and Ryan make their way into a small town, meet some sketchy local folk, including a highly underused Richard Brake (Batman Begins 2005, Mandy 2018), and then find their car is not working. What do they have to do? Stay at an isolated Airbnb in the woods while the mechanics fix the car. Isolated venue, sketchy town, weird residents, nighttime… what could go wrong? Apparently quite a bit.
With the seemingly endless onslaught of reboots, sequels, prequels, requels, remakes, reimaginings, etc., one watches a film like The Strangers: Chapter 1 and cannot help but feel a pang of disappointment. In short, it is a carbon copy of the 2008 original, just done with weaker characters, tension, suspense, craft… the list goes on. That is not to say the actors do not do their best to ground the material. Everyone in front of the camera is trying to make this film sing and pay homage to the movie that came before it. Still, in 2024, when we have seen countless home invasion films from all across the world and with the franchise it is a part of, this reboot seems petty and arguably feels like a lazy cash grab in the worst way. It is littered with set pieces we have seen many times, and a classical slow burn pace which, even within a 90-minute runtime, stills feels like it is testing your patience.
Despite The Strangers: Chapter 1 feeling precisely what it is… an uninspired, lifeless reboot of a beloved tentpole for home invasion horror, directed by a genre director who had success in the 1990s, it’s nostalgically nice to see Finland’s Renny Harlin back in the spotlight, at least. But what is really intriguing is the potential of the following two chapters (which have already been made). That might be the only morbid curiosity one might have for the continuation of this trilogy. Where do they go from here? It can’t be another rehash in a cabin in the woods… maybe they will go the Scream 6 route and take Madelaine Petsch and other unlucky victims to a big city. Who knows, and only time will tell.
If anything, what can we take from this unusual reboot trilogy not sure anybody asked for… it is a testament to how solid and timeless the original Bryan Bertino film is and how effective and alive the home invasion Horror sub-genre is and always will be. It is one of the few Horror genres that every person can relate to practically nightly. So this all being said, long live home invasion Horror, but we will have to wait to see the conclusion of this trilogy to see how much of a life Renny Harlin’s chapters have to live. For all of these reasons, Cryptic Rock gives The Strangers: Chapter 1, 2 out of 5 stars.
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