Grade: B-
I never would have anticipated that in a weekend that saw new releases of IF, Back to Black, and The Strangers: Chapter 1, the latter would be the best of the three. It’s the first in what will be a “relaunch trilogy.” You don’t have to have seen the previous two Strangers movies to see this. I hear that this is extremely similar, if not a beat-for-beat copy of 2008’s The Strangers. Chapter 2 is reported to be out later this year. The one and only announced cast member – at the moment – of parts 2 and 3 is someone who I’m surprised will be appearing in them, if you know what I mean.
The Strangers: Chapter 1 is a home invasion (in this case, Airbnb invasion) horror/thriller. Three masked killers break in to a house. The famous dialogue from the first film, slightly paraphrased in this one, happens here, in the last few minutes: “Why are you doing this to us?” “Because you were here.” But let me catch you up if you were unfamiliar. Ryan Bown and Madelaine Petsch play Jeff and Maya. They are road-tripping to Portland. After some standard expository dialogue (she is looking to get a job out west, they’ve been dating for 5 years, and he has yet to pop the question), they are hungry, so they pull off into the fictional town of Venus. Population: less than 500.
This is the kind of backwoods movie diner where as soon as out-of-towners walk in, every single head in the restaurant does a slow unison turn towards them. These places should do a better job of making their new customers feel more welcome. Imagine the Yelp reviews. After their meal, they find the car won’t start. They have to leave it with the local sketchy, greasy mechanics, and a waitress takes them to a remote cabin for the night.
The killers arrive. They are incredibly resilient, possessing a near ESP-like ability of knowing exactly which window to break through and when. They can disappear, show up anywhere, and dodge anticipated bullets. I hope to know more about them in future chapters; that kind of movie would be so fascinating. Maya and Jeff do things like run upstairs, take showers alone, lock themselves in rooms, and don’t pull a trigger when they should. Something blows up right on cue. Certain vehicles don’t start, but others do, no matter what they’ve been through.
I have a laundry list of quibbles, but there’s something to this film. Director Renny Harlin (The Long Kiss Goodnight, Driven) has a knack for creating and sustaining tension. Moonlight and fog are used well in the outdoor scenes. Inside, a piano (and the mirror above it) are utilized effectively. A late scene has a fun power ballad to underscore a character asking someone a question at a most unexpected time. The two leads look great. Whatever gender(s) you’re interested in, you’ll find at least one of them to be very easy on the eyes. I have to assume that horror veteran Richard Brake (from several Rob Zombie movies, Barbarian, and the recent The Last Stop in Yuma County) will have a more prominent role in the future chapters. He’s in this for just a few seconds, basically as a glorified extra in the diner. I can’t imagine them using him for just a lineless cameo in one film. I kinda liked The Strangers: Chapter 1 a little bit. I am eager and optimistic about the next installments.
Grade: B-
Film Reviews by Mark 
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