We Don't Need An Origin Story for The Strangers
There's another unnecessary prequel coming out. Oh, goody.
The Strangers is a modern horror classic. There’s really no doubt about that, considering it came out during a time when people were begging for the raw and realistic aspects of the genre. Instead of giving us another torture porn movie or a film about ghosts, The Strangers offered us a chilling story about a home invasion.
It was scary because of the realism that was present within the narrative. There weren’t any monsters or slashers doing the killing this time, rather it was a group of sick individuals simply killing for fun.
Keep in mind, the original movie came out in 2008. While, yes, it’s been almost 16 years since its initial release, that doesn’t mean it needs a revival. Quite the opposite, actually, considering the film is usually always topping charts for people when naming their favorite horror films.
The Strangers never left the minds of those who it impacted. It served as a dreadful reminder that there are dangerous people in the world—real people, not killers haunting camps—and kept people on edge in their own homes for years to come.
So, you have to imagine how strange it was to see that Lionsgate released a trailer for The Strangers: Chapter 1.
In my opinion, The Strangers worked best as a stand alone film. Although The Strangers: Prey at Night is something that, you know, exists.
I didn’t personally enjoy the sequel myself, but I know there are some people who definitely found it entertaining. It was whatever, I guess.
But this one? Now this one just seems unnecessary.
The Strangers: Chapter 1 will be serving as an origin story. This is evident in the trailer as well, with the whole “Witness how the Strangers became the Strangers” line. Which, by the way, that is one of the stupidest fucking things I’ve ever read.
Firstly, why do we need an origin story? Doesn’t an origin story defeat the purpose of the original movie? The whole reason why the original film was scary was because the Strangers were a group of killers committing home invasions with no actual reason behind them. They didn’t need an origin story or a reason why they were doing any of their crimes, because they were simply doing it to do it.
Secondly, how is this an origin story if this takes place in an Airbnb? The Strangers came out in 2008, the year Airbnb created its first website. In fact, the company didn’t seem to start renting out homes until 2009. So when exactly does this movie take place? How the hell is it in an Airbnb? Maybe that’s just me being nitpicky, but this cabin debate is different depending on which description you’re going off.
These are two descriptions both from the IMDB page:
After their car breaks down in an eerie small town, a young couple are forced to spend the night in a remote cabin. Panic ensues as they are terrorized by three masked strangers who strike with no mercy and seemingly no motive.
After their car breaks down in an eerie small town, a young couple (Madelaine Petsch and Froy Gutierrez) are forced to spend the night in a remote cabin. Panic ensues as they are terrorized by three masked strangers who strike with no mercy and seemingly no motive in THE STRANGERS: CHAPTER 1, the chilling first entry of this upcoming horror feature film series.
So is this just some random cabin or an Airbnb?! That’s definitely me being nitpicky, but I’m going to judge it regardless.
You might’ve also noticed that The Strangers: Chapter 1 strikes an uncanny resemblance to the original film. So much so that most people assumed this was actually a remake before it was revealed to be an origin story.
I don’t blame them. It has the exact same plot: a couple is terrorized in a cabin by masked killers for no reason. It’s why it seems so silly to even make this movie… because really, we don’t need it.
What made The Strangers so captivating was the concept behind the killers themselves. They weren’t there to kill out of revenge. They weren’t there to kill as part of a ritual or cult. They weren’t there to kill for a power kick.
No, the Strangers killed without motive. They didn’t need a reason to kill, nor did they purposely seek out specific people. The Strangers killed out of simple desire, using deadly home invasions as a game for their own twisted joy.
The Strangers made an impact on people because of the lack of motive they had. It was more horrifying to realize that there are, in fact, people out there who desire the sick satisfaction of taking another’s life.
There’s a reason why so many people give The Strangers props for making, possibly, one of the most spine-tingling lines in horror:
“Why are you doing this to us?”
“Because you were home.”
It’s an unsettling reminder that even in your own home, you’re not always safe.
The Strangers: Chapter 1 is only the beginning of a new trilogy for the franchise. In fact, they’re planning on “making you think” by focusing on the main characters for what seems like all three films. Instead of going the same route as The Strangers: Prey at Night where they terrorize a different group of people, this film trilogy will do the opposite.
Do I find this silly? Yes. Mostly because that defeats the purpose of what the Strangers are. They don’t stalk people. They’re not like Michael Myers going after Laurie Strode. The Strangers just find you, kill you, and go on with their day.
Perhaps I’m being too harsh on a film that hasn’t been released yet. Believe me, I’ll waste my money and go see it in hopes that it’ll prove me wrong. I want this movie to prove me wrong, but I’m not that excited about another reboot/requel/sequel/whatever-the-hell-this-is.
I’ll go into it with low expectations, like I usually do with these things, but I feel it’ll be difficult to top the original. The Strangers was a great horror film, encapsulating our worst fears and twisting them into something hard to digest. I don’t know if The Strangers: Chapter 1 will be able to recapture that same magic.
It's not so much an "origin story" as a "let's get a few more bucks cheaply out of the IP we own" story.