Review -- The Strangers: Prey at Night

The Strangers: Prey at Night (2018) -- Horror sequels are a mixed bag of tricks. Sometimes they work, sometimes they are merely lackluster and, often, they make you want to rewatch your horror favorites and calm your cinematic palate. The sequel to Bryan Bertino's 2008 shock fest The Strangers has been in the making since the original scared off the competition at the box office and it is finally here, minus much of the original's creep factor.  

When a troubled family stops at a remote trailer park for the night, their biggest problem is their fractured relationship with the rebellious teenage daughter (Bailee Madison). Her parents (Christina Hendricks and Martin Henderson) are taking her to boarding school, while her brother (Lewis Pullman) seems to be the only one who understands her. However, it does not take long for the night to turn deadly, with the arrival of three masked killers who start wreaking havoc and playing mind games with the family...

Prey at Night is a chilling horror film, with sympathetic characters and a whole lot at stake for them. These are its biggest strengths and its best advantage; as in the original, we get invested in these people before awful things start happening for no reason. Director Johannes Roberts, who helmed last summer's hit 47 Meters Down, has a feel for putting characters through the ringer and makes great use of the isolated locations. The film is reminiscent of 1970s thriller and horror pieces, from some innovative camerawork to Adrian Johnston's The Exorcist-like score, from the title's very font to that Texas Chainsaw Massacre homage. Still, I find that the original resonates better as a relentless horror ride. Its events and developments somehow felt more primal, more unexpected. From that opening scene with the two young missionaries and the bloody house, you did not know what on Earth you were in for, but you could figure that it was going to be a frightening two hours. There was no way to guess what the intruders' next move was going to be and how sinister their behavior would become. In that sense, the sequel occasionally feels like rehashing the already seen. Even though it provides effective scares, it does not break new ground. 

As in The Strangers, the music plays an important part, with the maniacs having graduated from obscure country to 1980s pop. I never knew Kim Wilde's older songs could be this creepy... not sure that I wanted to. This observation particularly refers to "Cambodia", which provides the soundtrack during an especially miserable scene. There is more of an obvious score here, which is one more thing that I liked about the original -- there was barely any music accompanying the horrific proceedings, making the film feel raw and almost like a found footage piece.

The cast is well chosen. Hendricks is affecting as the harrowed mother and Henderson is likeable as the father who is trying to keep the peace. Madison is the breakout star, imbuing her character Kinsey with grit and strength we can see she possesses from the beginning, and Pullman gives empathy and fearlessness to Luke, Kinsey's brother.

Overall, Prey at Night is a sequel worth seeing for the performances, characters and locales. Its intensity cannot be matched by the original's surprise factor, but it is a potent horror piece and a good addition to a tale that might well turn into a franchise. Whether or not it should is a different story; still, if any aspect of any future entry comes even close to that first knock on the door and a disconnected light, I think that the series will be fine. 

7/10