His eventual demise, though inevitable, is barely shown, denying the audience any real sense of horror.
The local diner, filled with suspicious characters, sets the stage for what is to come.
As they leave, their car mysteriously refuses to start.
Froy Gutierrez and Madelaine Petsch in ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’Photo Credit: John Armour for Lionsgate
In the middle of the woods, the cabins eerie isolation is immediately apparent.
When Ryan leaves to get food, Maya is left alone to face the escalating terror.
The Strangers: Chapter 1is everything wrong in the horror genre.
At least Madelaine Petsch is fun to watch.
She chews up every scene as if shes on an episode of Riverdale.
This is the result of a script that has very little to work with.
Maya and Ryan are written as painfully unaware and unprepared individuals, lacking any sense of self-preservation.
They are archetypal horror characters who make nonsensical choices purely to drive the plot.
This lack of character development results in a narrative devoid of creativity or originality.
While elevated horror is not a necessity, a modicum of ingenuity is.
