No.194 : The Strangers (2008)

The Strangers at the IMDb

This film opens with a caption saying that there are 1.3 million crimes of violence a year in America and that this film is ‘inspired by true events’. Off the bat we know that our own fears of being murdered will be played on and that they have basically made everything up. Just as well really as it’s nasty and pointless film that you’d hope would never happen in reality. But probably does.

We get a brief preamble of two boys entering a blood soaked house  - we can’t see any bodies but carnage has ensued. It is soon apparent that this is a flash forward…

Kirsten and James arrive home late after a night out. They drive a Volvo so we know that they are safety conscious and middle class. They arrive in silence and a flashback tells us that James proposed at their night out and she didn’t accept. Despite it being 4am they stick on some records and have a drink.

A knock on the door is the first sign that all is not well. A woman asks for someone they don’t know and we wonder if this was just a test to see if anyone is in. James goes out to get Kirsten some cigarettes and whilst he’s gone the door knocking continues. More sinister things happen such as a broken smoke alarm is found put back together and a man with a bag on his head is seen at the window.

James is initially sceptical but starts to buy in when his car gets trashed and his lost mobile phone shows up on the counter. He gets his father’s shotgun and the pair hide out in a back room -predictably the phone lines are down and the mobiles aren’t working.

Unfortunately for him, James’ friend Dennis Reynolds shows up and is promptly shot in the face. This doesn’t put off your bag and mask wearing bad guys however, with the three of them now revealed and in the house. Our heroes try to make it to a barn that has a radio but soon the pair are tied to some chars and, worryingly, the bad guys take off their masks. Who will survive? Why are they doing this and have I locked the door?

This film was all about the tension with every long period of silence ended with a scream or a jump scare. I find this very annoying and the screeching Liv Tyler, in the lead, lost any empathy from me long before the end. I didn’t like that there was no motivation from the bad guys and that they were simply just psychos. Even that is an assumption as we barely hear them talk and they are little more than devices for our characters to run away from.

It’s a common flaw in films like this that the bad guys have second sight - they always know what window to stand at and when to jump out of the way just as the character turns around. Just once I’d love to see one stub his toe and shout as he’s silently stalking the hero.

The violence was pretty nasty and I could see this film doing well in a darkened cinema with all the scares in full surround sound. There just wasn’t any substance. It takes about 15 minutes to start properly and only lasts 75 minutes in total. Even with just an hour of action it seems padded with the whole quest of getting to the radio in the barn seeming pointless and proving to be so.

If you like a good home invasion film check out ‘The Desperate Hours’. This one was just desperate.

THE Tag Line : There’s Somebody at the Door!  45%