I wanted to but couldn't!

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

I know I usually try to do a spoiler free review, but there is just too much to talk about. I never watched the first "The Strangers" movie, but I still gave this one a chance. Boy was that a mistake. A BLARING issue this film has is the main characters. Horror movie characters are known for making bad choices, but in this movie they're just flat-out stupid. Such as in one scene where the son finds a gun, he doesn't even use it though, he just leaves it behind shortly after. Another scene too where the daughter finds a shotgun, which she at least uses but then still leaves it in the car later. Right before the scene where the mother dies, she doesn't even defend herself, she just stands there and waits, no punching, pushing or anything even remotely defensive at all. Another big issue I have is the killer. They'res nothing paranormal about them, and they don't seem to have any special powers, but they still somehow seem to be EVERYWHERE. I mean everywhere. They're practically invincible too especially the Male Killer, which at one point is in a car accident, stabbed, and then in an explosion, but he still manages to get up after. There's a ton of other issues but this movie doesn't deserve a review this detailed. In conclusion, don't watch this movie, even if your a fan of horror.

This movie limped and crawled it's way to the 78 min mark desperate for feature length with its protracted rooms and hanging long shots that linger an age too long. You can tell even the writing is stretching it out. A 30 minute set piece stretched far beyond its scope. What material was there to fill the silence was basic to passable slasher.

The Strangers: Prey at Night is a color by numbers Slasher: minimal setup, fast paced Act II, Act III is executed cleanly. It is the horror film equivalent of a new look LA Rams screen pass, Goff to Gurley II, good for 9 yards. Early in the film there's an effective long shot panning slowly into a conversation in a gas station parking lot. Christina Hendricks delivers solid character work. At some point soon, we should begin appreciating the weird, post-Mad Men roles she's taken, and enhanced. There are some new takes on time honored/trodden Slasher tropes, making them just fresh enough to avoid the full ennui of the connoisseur.

To be honest: I kind of liked it. Really. I know that it's not Oscar-winning material, it surely isn't the best horror-flick that I've ever seen, but all considered it's actually not bad at all. It has a very creepy atmosphere, the pace is exactly right, the anonymous killers are menacing and sinister and there is a fair amount of violence and gore. The members of the family (both parents and the son and daughter) all get some personal depth, especially the daughter, so you really care what happens with them. And the script gives us a whole series of (obligatory) almost-endings until the final ending, but these are nicely done. The whole thing kept me up the edge of my chair until the end and the very last scene was surprisingly poignant: after all these ordeals the girl will understandably have a trauma for a big part of her life and that gave her reaction to the knock on the door a nice authentic touch, in spite of the obvious intention of the makers to suggest that maybe the horror starts again. The acting of all four main characters is fine, with special mention of young Bailee Madison en Lewis Pullman, who do a great job. My only reservation lies in the very core of this kind of harassment-movies: the assailants stay anonymous and their motives completely hidden. In spite of the fact that in the end you are very well entertained, it does leave you with a gnawing feeling of disappointment and resentment. Do movie-makers really want their audience to feel like that?! I always wonder if writers in such cases have serious artistic reasons to choose for open endings like this, or that they are lazy and simply don't care what the public feels out-of sheer arrogance. Well, apart from that, I still rank it 8 out of 10.