Reviews

If you've never heard of this movie, i'm not surprised. It would be a challenge to market a movie like this from a big budget studio. but that doesn't make it a bad film. Luckily, A24 releases indies films that would otherwise struggle in the business.

The film is about a mischievious young girl named Moonee, and her mother as they struggle to get by while living at a motel near DisneyWorld. The film features great performances from all of it's actors, the child ones especially. They all give it a very organic feel, seeming not just like characters but real people. This is also helped by how the film used very little well known actors.

A major turnoff for most people though would probably be the lack of a central plot. The film is mostly segments of the different characters milling around over one summer. While I felt it worked in this case to help build characters up and develop them, others might feel bored by it. Sort of like Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

The film is beautifully shot. Showing bright colors and landscapes, while also showing how harsh it can be at the same time. The whole plot is all seen through the eyes of child, and how she creates her own adventures, oblivious to the grim, poverty-stricken reality that she lives in. One of the few films i've seen to shed a realistic light on these issues.

I also enjoyed how the film used DisneyWorld in it's setting. Having the fireworks go off and people watching from outside the park. It almost made it seem like a dream, an far away place, where maybe the world feels a little bit brighter. The ending was beautiful. Just when you think you know how it's going to end, it switches. Maybe Moonee was taken away, or maybe she really did run off to a happier place. Maybe we know the answer, and maybe we just don't want to believe it.

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.