Day 28: The Strangers (2008)
“Narrator: What you are about to see is inspired by true events. According to the FBI, there are an estimated 1.4 million violent crimes in America each year. On the night of February 11, 2005, Kristen McKay and James Hoyt left a friend’s wedding reception and returned to the Hoyt family’s summer home. The brutal events that took place there are still not entirely known.”
Normally I’d be against a film like this. It reminds me of Open Water, a film that came out in 2003 about two scuba divers stranded in the middle of the ocean after being left behind from a tour boat. It was “based on a true story,” but really that’s a marketing tool. True stories are more interesting. Sure it was based on the fact that two people were left behind, but no one knows what the hell happened. All we know is they were never seen again. They could have drifted over to the Island.
The point is, there’s no point in saying it’s a true story other than marketing purposes. It should rather say, “Based on a true premise.” Everything else is made up, as is the case with The Strangers. Two people came home from a wedding, and the next day they were found dead in a cabin in the middle of the woods. It’s entirely possible someone was able to piece together things from the visual evidence left behind, but whatever, there’s almost no point either.
However, the difference with The Strangers is that it’s actually smart, and very metformin side metformin hydrochloride 500 mg pill effects hair loss well done. There’s hardly any dialogue. It’s extremely self-contained. Fear is based in what you can’t see, the sounds you can hear, and the three people wearing masks. It’s freaky as hell.
First time I saw it, I was with my brother Doug and his two friends Chris and Matt. Doug isn’t one to be scared, and at one point during the film he shrieked out loud. Chris’ head had receded into his sweatshirt like a turtle shell, and Matt was hiding behind a blanket, only his eyes peeking out above. Me? I was in the fetal position on the couch.
It’s just an awesomely affective, smartly directed horror film. With gore being the driving force behind 90% of horror today, it’s rare to see a horror film with such quality of filmmaking. And a lot of the fear works through the simplest of images. Aside from the masks themselves jsut being creepy, there’s a scene where Liv Tyler is walking through the kitchen, and all the sudden, in the background, the man in the potato sack mask steps out in the darkness. He just stands there and stares at her. Doesn’t move. Director Bryan Bertino doesn’t cut away to a closeup. He just leaves us staring at the wide shot, and the motionless invader. And then he disappears. It’s just smart horror.
And after I first saw this that night, a day later I had to go watch my parents house for the weekend, alone, and stay with the dog. My parents house has large sliding doors leading out to the backyard, and a thin curtain that slides across. I was mildly horrified every time I opened the door to let the dog out, especially at night, thinking I was going to see baghead and his dollface accomplices standing at different corners next to the post lights.
