Strange things
The Strangers is an odd film. It does its best to horrify, or rather terrify the viewer. That’s not a bad thing at all, but if there really isn’t a rhyme or reason can it be considered good? The set-up is perfect, you have a very estranged couple (Scott Speedman and Liv Tyler) who are out at a house in the middle of nowhere. The plot unfolds that their relationship isn’t going well as Tyler’s Kristen has just rejected Speedman’s James’ proposal. James wants out of the house, Kristen is just kind of being silent. Just when things couldn’t get worse, people with masks mysteriously appear and begin to bother/try-to-kill the couple.
The set-up was potentially powerful. The strangers had the potential to connect themselves with the couple or the house or even the volvo in the drive-way, but both are oil and water. (SPOILERS AHEAD)
The movie is truly made for terrifying the audience. It’s no more than a gimmick or a way to make audiences jump. I’m not opposed to this at all, I think it’s a great way to approach a horror film. The problem is that it’s completely pointless. It’s okay to be mysterious and it’s okay to give somewhat of a slim connection between protagonist and antagonist. The creepy figures have no reason for being on the property and have no connection with Kristen or James. While you could probably argue,”Well, that’s how it’s suppose to be! These people have nothing in common, except the murderers want to murder and the victims just happen to be there.” You can argue that point, but if you hope to give your audience some sort of entertainment, connect A and B. It might have been a bit too artsy and realistic (in a sense) for its own good. Clearly at the end of the film you see these folks are serial killers, in a sense, but even serial killers have a purpose (as terrible as that sounds).
(SPOILERS END)
With that said, the movie falls short in substance, but manages to give you a collection of illogical scares that you won’t soon forget. Had there been more of a point to the film, or a solid set of plot points, I could have enjoyed this more. I think Bertino did a wonderful job of creating those uncomfortable, unexplainable moments. He did a great job with setting up terrifying scenes, but he failed to connect all the dots, which makes it sad in so many ways.
Take what you created, Bertino, and move forward with it. I think the concept of terror instead of horror is brilliant, but it doesn’t work as well here. Give it more substance, more of a reason and you have yourself an entirely new and workable genre.
Until you’re Blu in the face
As I stated earlier in the Poltergeist review, Blu-ray certainly enhances the experience of a horror/terror film. It will first put you in your visual place and keep you uncomfortable. The scene in The Strangers where they (Speedman and Tyler) are looking from a window into the front yard and see the girl with the mask, that’s just plain terrifying. The browns and blacks in the shot are so detailed that you can actually see the shape of the girl’s mask and the expression that is attached to it. You probably wouldn’t be able to see that type of detail on DVD. Just excellent and horrible at the same time. As for the audio, this is the portion of the Blu-ray that will make you **** a brick. It brings the audible terror to you and forces you to react. That’s 90% of your production and just enough to make you tense.
As for the features, you get some good BD Live content which offers a greater experience and you get two features included on the disc (The Elements of Terror featurette and delected scenes). The featurette gives a clearer picture of what the director/writer was trying to accomplish. I like it when they add more depth to the film through the features. The deleted scenes were rightfully deleted. Another nice portion of the Blu-ray, which only Blu-ray can deliver, is an unrated version of the film and theatrical version, both in HD, on one single disc. This is good stuff, and it helps if you really like the film.