Jakarta. Hollywood has released another slasher horror with “The Strangers: Chapter 1”, and the movie gives the audience 91 minutes of a letdown.

Directed by Renny Harlin, “The Strangers: Chapter 1” follows a couple --Maya (Madelaine Petsch) and Ryan (Froy Gutierrez)-- who are going on a road trip for their fifth anniversary. After their car breaks down, they have to stay the night at a remote cabin out in the woods where they encounter three masked strangers. Throughout the movie, the couple tries to escape from these psychopaths. 

The protagonists Maya-Ryan are incredibly poorly written and also lack chemistry as a couple. They feel somewhat one-dimensional so the audience does not feel as sorry for whatever happens to the couple. In fact, Maya-Ryan can come off as annoying. It is normal for the audience to get annoyed by thriller movie protagonists. 

Whatever they do --such as checking the frightening sounds in the basement-- is crucial to keep the plot going. But there are times when you cannot just tolerate what these characters are doing, and “The Strangers: Chapter 1” is an example of those instances. 

For instance, Ryan had one of the masked strangers --Pin-Up Girl-- at gunpoint. But another psychopath Scarecrow knocked Ryan out before the latter got to pull the trigger. I remember crossing my fingers hoping that Ryan would defeat Pin-Up Girl so we could get a moment of horror movie protagonists fighting back. At the beginning of the movie, we see Ryan leaving Maya alone at the house as he goes out to get his inhaler and some food. The masked strangers had already snuck into the house, and they were secretly watching Maya. There were moments when I asked myself: “Why did Maya do this?” and “Why did you choose to hide there?”. And I can tell the viewers sitting next to me during the movie’s screening were thinking the same thing.

“The Strangers: Chapter 1” had some jumpscares, some of which were quite expected. Although I admit that there were some jumpscares that did actually surprise me. 

“The Strangers” is set to come in a trilogy, and the sequel is slated to be released later this year. The end of the first chapter also shows that Maya had survived the masked strangers’ attacks. But judging by the first chapter, I don’t think “The Strangers” deserves a sequel.

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