After returning from a wedding reception, a young couple, Kristen and James, retreat to an isolated vacation home to work through a strain in their relationship. Their tense night takes a terrifying turn when a knock at the door introduces them to three masked strangers. Cut off from the outside world, the couple is forced into a violent struggle for survival against tormentors who have no apparent motive other than the fact that the victims were simply home.
Information |
|
|---|---|
Language |
English |
Country |
United States |
Premiere date |
May 30, 2008 |
Running time |
86 minutes |
Genre |
Horror Mystery Thriller |
Budget |
$9,000,000 |
Box Office |
$82,391,145 |
Crew |
|
Directed by |
Bryan Bertino |
Produced by |
Doug Davison Roy Lee Nathan Kahane |
Written by |
Bryan Bertino |
Music by |
tomandandy |
Cinematography |
Peter Sova |
Edited by |
Kevin Greutert |
Production Co. |
Rogue Pictures Vertigo Entertainment Mandate Pictures |
Distributed by |
Rogue Pictures |
Official Trailer
The Plot
The Failed Proposal and the First Knock
The narrative begins in medias res with the chilling audio of a 911 call from a young boy, screaming that he and his friend have discovered bodies lying in blood inside an old vacation home. The story then jumps back in time to follow James Hoyt and his girlfriend, Kristen McKay, as they arrive at James' childhood summer home in a secluded area far from civilization. It is late at night, and the couple is exhausted and irritable following a friend's wedding reception. Through flashbacks and dialogue, the source of the palpable tension between them is revealed: James had proposed to Kristen after the reception, but she rejected him, stating she was not ready for marriage. The atmosphere in the house is heavy with awkward silence and disappointment.
Trying to salvage the logistical situation, James calls his friend Mike and asks him to come pick him up in the morning, intending to give Kristen space. Shortly after 4:00 a.m., the silence of the remote property is broken by a loud knock at the front door. James answers it to find a young blonde woman standing in the shadows, her face obscured by low lighting. She asks a confusing question: "Is Tamara here?" James informs her that she has the wrong house. The woman accepts this but leaves with an ominous, casual caveat: she will "see them later."
Isolation and the Invisible Intruders
Due to the lingering tension, James decides to go for a drive to purchase a pack of cigarettes for Kristen, leaving her alone in the large, dark house. Before he departs, he starts a fire in the hearth to keep her warm. Once he is gone, Kristen realizes the chimney flue is closed; as she attempts to open it, smoke billows into the room, triggering a piercing smoke alarm. While she attempts to disarm the device, she is startled by another knock at the door. Unnerved, she drops the alarm on the floor and approaches the door. The same blonde woman is outside, once again asking for Tamara. Kristen, now agitated, reminds her that she already came by and firmly locks the door as the mysterious girl walks away.
Kristen attempts to call James’ cellphone from the landline, but the call is cut short, increasing her anxiety. She retreats to the bedroom but eventually returns to the living area, where she makes a terrifying discovery: the smoke alarm she had dropped on the floor is now sitting on a chair. She realizes someone has been inside the house with her. When she goes to retrieve her cell phone from the charger, she finds it is missing. Panic begins to set in.
The Masks Revealed
Hearing a noise from the backyard, Kristen arms herself with a large kitchen knife and cautiously opens the curtains. She is met with the sight of a man wearing a burlap sack mask staring directly at her. Screaming in terror, she stumbles into the hallway, only to watch as the front door is forced ajar. She moves to push the door closed and sees the blonde woman outside, now wearing a doll-like mask. After managing to lock the door, Kristen retreats to the bedroom, hiding as she hears people outside banging violently against the walls of the house.
The noise eventually stops, and James returns. Kristen frantically explains what happened. James goes outside to the car to retrieve his phone, only to find the vehicle ransacked and vandalized. In the distance, he sees the blonde woman, "Dollface," watching him. He realizes his phone battery has been stolen and the house has been breached. Desperate to escape, the couple attempts to leave in James' car, but a third stranger—a woman wearing a "Pin-Up Girl" mask—rear-ends them with a pickup truck, totaling their vehicle and forcing them to flee back into the house.
A Tragic Mistake in the Dark
Back inside, James and Kristen find a shotgun and retreat to a bedroom to wait for the intruders. To torment them further, one of the strangers puts a country record on the turntable, filling the house with eerie music. Meanwhile, James' friend Mike arrives early to pick him up. Seeing the smashed car in the driveway, Mike realizes something is wrong and enters the house to investigate. James, hearing the movement and mistaking Mike for one of the intruders, fires the shotgun, shooting him dead. James is devastated by the realization of what he has done.
Desperate and running out of options, James remembers an old radio transmitter located in a barn/shed in the backyard. He decides to make a run for it. Outside, he encounters Pin-Up Girl searching with a flashlight. James attempts to shoot her, but the Man in the Mask ambushes him, knocking him unconscious and causing the rifle to discharge inadvertently.
The Final Capture
Hearing the gunshot, Kristen assumes the worst and makes a run for the shed herself. She finds the radio transmitter, but before she can use it, Pin-Up Girl appears and smashes the device with an axe. Kristen rushes back to the main house, where she encounters Dollface, who taunts her with a knife. Kristen tries to escape but is incapacitated by the Man in the Mask. Both James and Kristen are now unconscious and at the mercy of the three strangers.
When the couple awakens, it is morning. They are tied to chairs in the living room with the three masked strangers standing before them. Terrified and weeping, Kristen attempts to reason with them before finally asking, "Why are you doing this?" Dollface replies with a chillingly simple motive: "Because you were home." The strangers then unmask themselves to the couple—though their faces remain unseen by the audience—and take turns stabbing James and Kristen in the chest and abdomen before leaving them for dead.
"It'll Be Easier Next Time"
The three murderers drive away in their truck and come across two young Mormon boys on bicycles who are distributing religious tracts. Dollface steps out of the truck and asks for a tract. One of the boys asks her, "Are you a sinner?" She replies, "Sometimes." The boy hands her a card, and as the strangers drive away, Pin-Up Girl remarks, "It'll be easier next time."
The two boys continue down the road and eventually come upon the Hoyt house. They discover the chaotic scene: the front door is open, and a smashed car sits in the driveway. Inside, they find the bloodied bodies of Kristen, James, and Mike. One of the boys slowly approaches Kristen's body. As he reaches out to touch her, Kristen—who is still alive—suddenly wakes up and grabs his hand, screaming in a final jump scare as the screen cuts to black.
Top Cast
- Liv Tyler as Kristen McKay
- Scott Speedman as James Hoyt
- Gemma Ward as Dollface
- Kip Weeks as Man in Mask
- Laura Margolis as Pin-Up Girl
- Glenn Howerton as Mike
Movie Collection
- The Strangers (2008)
- The Strangers: Prey at Night (2018)
