Micro Review: The Strangers: Prey At Night

Brian Bertino's The Strangers is one of my favourite horror flicks of the early 2000s. It wore its ode to John Carpenter's Halloween on its sleeve, and gave us a bleak-as-all-get-out ending that most studio efforts lack.

A decade is a long time between sequels, especially successful horror sequels. So I was a bit hesitant going into The Strangers: Prey At Night. There was a different director at the helm, and I wasn't sure we needed more stories about our murderous gang of youthful home invaders, especially after such a long absence.

Fortunately, the wait was worth it. Not only does director Johannes Roberts keep -- and even improve upon -- Bertino's visual style, but we get a bigger cast of actually likeable (enough) characters who have no qualms about fighting back when push comes to shove.

No, this Strangers doesn't have the same level of suspense that made the first film so intense. But that isn't to say it's boring. Far from it. The last act is especially tense and delivers some well played moments where prey turn on predator. I really dug the final showdown between our Survival Girl and The Man in the Mask. It's, as we say in Canada, A good'er!

This is a great looking, and atmospheric, horror film that isn't afraid to get a little bloody. It's simple, straight ahead and highly entertaining. Yeah, I'm giving it a Good.

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