The Strangers (Rogue Pictures)
Violence For Violence Sake
There is nothing the least bit entertaining about The Strangers. It is just an exercise in violence that has neither point nor impact. Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman are the main actors in the film and they convey the horror their characters feel as they are pursued by unknown people who break into their home. Without their acting skills the movie would be an even bigger waste than it is.
James Hoyt (Speedman) and Kristen McKay (Tyler) are a couple who have attended a wedding reception. While there they have an argument but still go to his fathers house on a lake in South Carolina. The area around the house is fairly deserted but they have no reason not to feel safe.
Even though it is late at night there is knock on the door. When they open it they find a girl who asks if Tamara is there. They explain she must have the wrong house. James then leaves to get Kristen some cigarettes and while he is gone she begins to hear strange sounds in the house.
When James gets home the terror begins and it doesnt end until the movie does. It is a slow game of cat and mouse between the invaders and the couple. The audience is caught up in a voyeuristic house of horrors.
The major problem with the film is you never know the motivation for anything that happens. Why are the invaders there Why do James and Kristen act so stupidly Do the invaders have supernatural powers that allow them to appear and disappear at random None of these questions are ever answered, and the ending which is really stupid just leaves more questions.
Speedman and Tyler make an appealing couple but they never give you a true feeling of who or what these people are. That is probably more a problem with the script than with their talent.
If all director Bryan Bertino wanted to do was make a scary movie, and not a plausible one, then he succeeded. This film is chillingly horrifying from the first scene until the last. The tension doesnt ever let up.
The movie is rated R for violence and profanity.
The movie is said to be based on true events. If that is the case then couldnt some more explanatory information have been given Being left completely in the dark is not a good way to end a film.
I scored The Strangers an unknown 3 out of 10.
