The Strangers: Chapter 1
by Renny Harlin

Back in 2008, the world was gifted an exciting home invasion horror flick that really set a new standard for the sub-genre. The Strangers, starring Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman, knocked it out of the park and the film still holds up to this day.

I think what makes home invasion such an actually terrifying sub-genre is that there are no roots in paranormal or metaphysical, it’s just plain old scary humans being shitty to other humans, and that’s part of what made the original Strangers film stand out. Sure, masks have always been a thing, icons like Jason, Leatherface, and Ghostface come immediately to mind, but the 2010s saw a new take on this with films like You’re Next and The Purge series, and I can’t help but think that the masked home invaders in The Strangers played a huge part in this new generation of cutesy horror masks that psychos don before they get to terrorizin’.

Now, flash forward to present day, and we’re delivered this sub-par excuse for a reimagining of the original film. The Strangers: Chapter 1 was poorly marketed and quite misleading, many thinking it was a prequel, many thinking it was an expansion of the original universe. Instead, what we got was a dodgy attempt at creating a “who-dun-it” town full of Pacific Northwest Hillbillies that dismembers the mystery and horror of the masked invaders. I suppose this was a clever attempt at a misdirect, but it just felt like a trick that didn’t land.

The main characters were miscast as, at first glance, I thought they were brother and sister. Then you realize they’re a couple, but the chemistry is so bad that the relationship never takes off and, honestly, it would have felt like more of a storyline effort to have them be siblings. The on-screen relationship was so forced and awkward that I would have preferred just about anything else.

The film is a lazy remake with eyerolling predictability and a snoozefest of a first act. One jumpscare really got me, but in 2024, this can’t possibly be a measure of greatness. I think a cool idea would have been to call this movie something else entirely, and just focus on a weird town of creepy locals who like to fuck with outsiders. Another tired trope, sure, but still something that can be made into a good time and doesn’t disguise itself as a “reimagining.”

Save yourselves the money and time, just rewatch 2008’s The Strangers.