PLOT: Maya, the sole survivor of The Strangers’ murdering spree of the previous night, must do everything in her power to survive the continued, relentless attacks from the masked killers while reckoning with the ways that these events are transforming her into someone else.
REVIEW: I think I was one of the only people on the planet who actually enjoyed The Strangers: Chapter 1. It was a simple remake of the original film, and I appreciated how slashery it was in its setup. I’ll always be a sucker for anything slasher-related. So I was interested in seeing where they’d take Maya’s story. Much like Halloween 2, we get a continuation from the previous night, starting out in the hospital. The Strangers realize that they haven’t finished the job and are out to get her, while she has to try to escape their clutches and get out of Venus, Oregon. But how does The Strangers: Chapter 2 compare to the first? Well…
The best part of the film is Madelaine Petsch‘s Maya, who breaks from her passive mold from the first film and is much more proactive here. She really takes the lead, often alone and without a scene partner, and is able to portray a much more interesting version of Maya. She’s unsure of her surroundings but is very take charge. Sure, she gets very lucky in several instances, but it prolongs the cat-and-mouse chase that is at play throughout the movie. I found her journey believable, and I’m curious to see what they do with her in Chapter 3, especially since it seems like she’s going to have some more at stake. I love a good final girl, and Maya is turning into one I’m quite enjoying.
As shown in the trailers, much of the movie is about the paranoia around who could be The Strangers themselves. And there are plenty of red herrings and moments where it feels like they’re showing their hand too soon. But it ultimately ends in more of a whimper than a bang, and I found myself annoyed at how little progress was actually made in the story. We find everything out in the first five minutes, and very little changes throughout the runtime. In fact, narratively, it doesn’t even feel like we’re getting an entire film as it just sort of ends. I was shocked when the credits started rolling. I get there’s another film but at least the first one had a complete arc.
I was most disappointed in the lack of violence. I actually had to check and make sure this wasn’t PG-13, as there are so many cutaways, versus actually showing us the good stuff. What’s the point of killing off so many characters if you’re not even going to make the audience feel it? Instead, so much is done offscreen. I was definitely expecting more of a ramp-up after Chapter 1 took it relatively easy, but this feels like they dialed it back further. And I’ve never been more sick of the “crossbow out of nowhere” kill, which happens far too many times, and leaves more questions than answers. It doesn’t help that the film is practically void of tension, given that we know Maya makes it to the next film.
There’s a moment with a CGI boar where I let out an audible groan upon seeing the creature. It’s both poorly rendered and an overall silly sequence. Are the Strangers themselves really not enough of a threat that we also need to bring wildlife into the mix? It feels like maybe the wrong lessons were taken from the backlash to Chapter 1, and they went a little further off the beaten path. But instead of increasing the gore (a la Prey at Night), they felt like giving the Strangers backstory was the way to go. Whether it brings a satisfying conclusion or not will have to wait until Chapter 3 releases, where we hopefully get a completed arc.
Ultimately, I was not a fan of the direction they took Chapter 2 in, and felt like the flashbacks were very misguided in the overall scheme of things. Audiences want these people to be mysterious, so explaining their motivations feels like it’s going against what people want. There’s a way to do that and still keep it interesting, but to make it something that goes back to childhood? Feels a bit lame. Just show us a town of people who threaten and kill outsiders; no reason to make it so convoluted. I hope they’re able to fix it with Chapter 3, as I really like the creative team and want this to end on a high note.
THE STRANGERS: CHAPTER 2 IS IN THEATERS ON SEPTEMBER 26TH, 2025.
