Reimaginings and reboots, including The Strangers: Chapter 1, often have big shoes to fill. To be successful, they must simultaneously honor the original film(s) and offer their contemporary audiences something meaningfully unique to earn their—albeit forced—existence in the eyes of the scathing horror fanbase. 2022’s Hellraiser, 2013’s Evil Dead, and 2017’s Suspiria are excellent horror reboots that fulfill those criteria. On the other hand, many do not. Although The Strangers: Chapter 1 was never supposedly meant to be a remake, it is largely copied and pasted from the much superior 2008 original and somehow manages to misplace every element that made the latter movie so disturbing for its time.
In this attempt to revive the Strangers brand and the first entry of a planned trilogy, Madelaine Petsch and Froy Gutierrez star as Maya and Ryan, a couple traveling cross-country to begin a new life in Oregon. When their car breaks down in the stereotypically rural town of Venus, Oregon, they reluctantly rent out a local AirBnB (far away from “civilization,” of course) and encounter the eponymous Strangers. There is an attempt to do something different immediately, introducing Venus and its residents, who all exude a shifty small-town aura, distrustful of the preppy city folk. Venus would be a refreshing departure from the beginning of the original Strangers, but everything feels much too prototypically slasher and familiar.
Courtesy of Lionsgate Films
Once the couple arrives at the AirBnB, the film extensively resembles Bryan Bertino’s 2008 cult classic. Here, the setting and lead characters differ, but many of the same story beats persist, from the initial knocking on the door during a makeout session to an untimely death to car-on-car violence and more. Despite this mimicry, however, Chapter 1 immediately feels like the cheap imitation that it is. Petsch and Gutierrez do their best, but the on-screen couple has little chemistry with one another, and their acting when confronting the Strangers is less than believable in many of the film’s more intense moments. Then, there is the pivotal matter of how the film and director Renny Harlin (who will lead all three chapters of the new trilogy) treat the Strangers as antagonists.
Compared to Bertino’s classic, the Strangers of Chapter 1 appear on-screen far too often to make any meaningful impact as terrifying stalker-killers. After entering the home, Harlin chooses to showcase the Strangers as much as possible, practically one step above sticking a GoPro onto each one for the movie’s duration. This frequency eliminates so much tension because we always know the Strangers are toiling about somewhere nearby and that they always have the upper hand. It also makes the villains far less menacing and mysterious than in 2008’s thriller.
Courtesy of Lionsgate Films
Therefore, this decision to regularly show off the Strangers makes Maya and Ryan’s attempts at fighting back or escaping fruitless and predictable. When there are attempts at scares, Harlin, unfortunately, enlists his sound engineers to crank up the levels for a series of formulaic jump scares. On a positive note, some of the practical and technical elements in Chapter 1 shine, including the eerie, isolated cabin setting, which is much more visually striking than 2008’s summer home location, and there are impressive cinematographic moments within the cabin and the surrounding woods. The soundtrack of Chapter 1 is also notable, and the editing team effectively uses it to control the tone of certain key scenes.
Courtesy of Lionsgate Films
Toward the film’s conclusion, it becomes apparent that Harlin and Lionsgate are taking a more traditionally slasher approach to this new iteration of the Strangers franchise. It is a fascinating and different idea to look forward to, even if it does betray the dark and dramatic hopelessness of the 2008 original, a legacy Chapter 1 is very clearly hoping to leverage to make any significant traction among horror audiences and the global box office. Disappointingly, it fails at that and does not succeed in making for a great slasher either, but there are some attractive aspects that may make for an amusing night at the movie theater anyway.
The Strangers: Chapter 1 is now playing in theaters nationwide.
Yeah. HARD pass.
Bart, what did you do to insult Defacto, that they gave you such an assignment? I need to speak to Robert and try and get you back in his good graces!!!
They couldn’t pay me to see it, but since you did you fashioned a superbly -written and perception takedown! One could hardly ask for more!
The original was little more than a staged snuff film. There wasn’t much of a story. I was surprised to see this remade, and expanded.
Dang. Strangers was seriously terrifying. I’m going to watch this and be hopeful. lol.
I heard a lot about this franchise, but never had any had the chance to watch any of them yet. I mean, this industry mostly is heading toward money rather than passion aspect of it.
Meh. Nothing much going for this film. To me seemed like a needless rehash of the original film. Has the usual jump cut scares and all the other tropes we see in these kind of films. Bottom line never stray far from the interstate when traveling 2 of 4 stars
This seems like one of those ones where we have to wait for part 2/3 to to make a decision on them as a whole, but just remaking the first movie for a 3 part movie series was such an odd intro.