Spoiler free!
In 2008, the psychological horror The Strangers was released to theatres. Written and directed by Bryan Bertino—a man who, at the time, was practically an unknown in Hollywood—it was shot on a budget of $9 million with barely any promotion. And yet, The Strangers became a sleeper hit. Grossing $82 million at the box office worldwide, it was a cult favourite before the year had even ended.
Fast forward to this May, its remake was released to cinemas and has already been greenlit as a trilogy. The Strangers: Chapter 1 was directed by Renny Harlin and stars Madelaine Petsch and Froy Gutierrez as the main protagonists.
When I walked into the cinema with my friends, I was ready to be scared. Having watched the original as a child and remember climbing into my sister’s bed that night, I had high expectations. Instead, my friends and I walked out laughing in disbelief.
The story follows Maya and Ryan after their car breaks down in an eerie small town and are forced to spend the night in a remote cabin. Panic ensues as they are terrorised by three masked strangers who strike with no mercy and seemingly no motive.
It is a film that falls under the home invasion subgenre of horror where the main criteria is as follows: the action must mainly be contained inside the home, the perpetrators must be human and not supernatural, and there must be a long-siege between the invaders and the home-dwellers. All of these criteria help create an elevated fear factor that forces us to think about our own safety while watching the film, or lack of it, when being in the one place where we are supposed to feel the safest.
The Strangers: Chapter 1 opens up with a powerful statistic stating that “there are an estimated 1.4 million violent crimes in the US each year.” The same statistic that is seen in the original film and reminds us of the violence that is currently rampant in our own society. A second title card appears, stating that this film is a story of one of the most violent cases, and with an R rating, it immediately sets the tone and fills you with anticipation.
However, as the movie progresses, you quickly realise that all it did was set itself high expectations that it struggled to meet. The storyline was easy to follow, the chemistry between Petsch and Gutierrez was alright, and the strangers were aptly creepy.
Overall, the film was just okay.
Besides the difference in setting, from a sleepy town to a cabin in the woods, the plot was exactly the same as the 2008 film. In fact, one could argue that this film was not an homage to the original but a simple copy and paste, offering nothing new or making zero comments on the modern times. You’d think with a film franchise that is synonymous with home invasion horror, they would have done something clever with the increased use of smart technology. I understand that it’s set in a cabin in the middle of nowhere, but I’m sure they’ve heard of a Ring doorbell!
From cringey writing to cheap jump scares, The Strangers: Chapter 1 does not stand out within the horror genre and offers no genuine reason for anyone to go and see it unless they are a fan of the original.
The main thing that The Strangers: Chapter 1 struggled with most was the main reason why the original film worked so well: building tension.
Bryan Bertino, the director of The Strangers (2008), eschewed cheap thrills to wisely build tension up to a near-breaking point. This deliberate slow pacing mirrored the same torture that the couple was feeling onto the audience as you wait for the night to end. It is this sense of dread that does not leave you even after the credits have stopped rolling. The Strangers was a chillingly realistic movie that forced us to think of the same possibilities that could happen to us at home.
The Strangers: Chapter 1 failed to achieve this. The main characters, Maya and Ryan, felt like hollow vessels—caricatures of a supposed couple we were meant to relate to. This isn’t to say that the acting was bad, the fault mainly lies with the scriptwriting. It was ineffective in making me fully empathise with them.
However, it was effective in making me stressed. The sole reason for this was that from very early on, we knew that they had extremely low to non-existent chances of survival. There was no hope. We were literally just watching a couple being terrorised. Add in the fact that the boyfriend was one of the most stupid people alive, continuously making horrible decisions and doing every stereotypical thing we know NOT to do in a horror film, it was hard to root for the protagonists.
I swear that Petsch’s character from Riverdale, Cheryl Blossom, could have defeated the strangers within the first act.
In the end, it is clear to say that the original film still reigns superior. While The Strangers: Chapter 1 was a generally fun watch, the film’s execution lacks the psychological depth and slow-burning tension that cemented Bryan Bertino’s 2008 film as a cult favourite.
However, for fans of the original, do not lose hope as there are still two films in Renny Harlin’s trilogy to do the original justice. With no prior third instalment to draw from, Harlin has an opportunity to inject fresh originality and play with more modern takes, potentially revitalising the franchise. For now, The Strangers: Chapter 1 serves as a reminder that not all horror can be successfully revived.
