PopHorror Let's Get Scared
Picture this. The year is 2008 and a very eager, horror-loving twenty year old Lacy Lou excitedly enters the movie theater to see The Strangers. Little did she know that this would be the very last movie in a decade that would bring actual shivers down her spine. She left the theater in awe of what had just transpired on screen. This is the frisson of excitement that every horror fan fiends for.
I’ve been craving that feeling ever since. Imagine my elation when I heard, after years of rumors, that there would be an official sequel to The Strangers. I intentionally avoided any trailers or articles about The Strangers: Prey At Night in hopes that when I did see it, I would be overcome with the same sense of fear the first one had installed in me ten years ago… especially that post-credit cliffhanger ending with Liv Tyler’s character, Kristen, still being alive. Would Johannes Roberts’ follow up film give me those same shivery scares that I got with The Strangers? Or would I just be praying that this movie was over as soon as possible? Let’s discuss.
Official synopsis of The Strangers: Prey at Night:
A family staying in a secluded mobile home park for the night are visited by three masked psychopaths to test their every limit.
What Works:
Oh, man, this is tough. I honestly had to sleep on this one to gather my thoughts on how I truly felt about this film. Before I go on my rant about what doesn’t work, I suppose I should give credit where credit is due. The soundtrack is, by far, awesome… although even that feels forced with songs that are already associated with other nostalgic movies. I mean, how many times do we need Bonnie Tyler’s “Turn Around” in a movie? I don’t know know about you, but I already associate that with two other iconic films, so it felt cheap and overplayed here, but nonetheless, it’s good music. The Strangers: Prey At Night was shot incredibly well. It gave the film a very vintage feeling. However, it left me confused as to what year this movie was supposed to take place in. So, fun music… check. Cinematography… check. What about the rest? Well, let’s just mosey on down to what doesn’t work, shall we?
What Doesn’t Work:
I feel as if I’m being a bit harsh in this review. But honestly, I don’t give a fuck. I’m pissed. I feel robbed. There was so much potential with this film, and it was just squandered away. For starters – SPOILER – This is not a direct sequel, and there is no Liv Tyler. So, don’t bother wasting your time after the credits to roll for something amazing happen like I did. You get nothing… unless you count the feeling of emptiness and disappointment you’re now feeling.
If you are wondering if a family of four can accomplish what only two people did in the first film, the answer is a big, fat NO. There really is no sense of fight or flight urgency in any of these characters. The strangers don’t give off the same sense of creepiness they did in the first film. Why the fuck were they talking so much in this one? In my opinion, one of the creepiest lines in horror movie history is from the first film: “Because you were home.” The randomness was what worked out so well. This one was pre-planned and just stupid.
Do people actually vacation in mobile homes? There is not a single likable character in this damn movie. The kill scenes were completely uninspired, and one scene is basically just a rip off of the car scene in Scream. This movie serves no purpose. There are no stand out performances. One scene could have been amazing, and they even managed to screw that up.
Final Thoughts:
What they should have done with this movie is change the masks and name it The Mobile Home Murders or something along those lines, instead of The Strangers: Prey at Night. I am choosing to ignore this installment. If you want my advice, save your ticket money and wait until it’s streaming.
