The Strangers: Chapter 1
critic Reviews
, 21% Rotten Tomatometer Score- Lacking the chilling suspense of the original The Strangers and proving to be just unpleasant, this Chapter 1 closes the book on itself.
- , Fresh Tomatometer ScoreElizabeth WeitzmanTime Out
As for the strangers, all they need to be is terrifying, a task at which they consistently excel. Just make sure to stay through the credits. That is, if you haven’t already rushed home to bolt the doors.
Read full article - , Rotten Tomatometer ScoreKristy PuchkoMashable
Personally, nihilistic horror hits me as more unpleasant and depressing than engagingly scary. Such bleakness bleeds out tension, making for a remake that is merciless but also exhaustingly familiar.
Read full article - , Rotten Tomatometer ScoreMatt SchimkowitzAV Club
The Strangers no longer looks like something that can happen to anyone, but rather something that can only happen to someone in a Strangers movie.
Read full article - , Rotten Tomatometer ScoreAdam GrahamDetroit News
The original was a tightly wound nail biter, full of looming dread, but this one runs on fumes: there's no tension or atmosphere, just recycled beats from the original, played like a cheap cover song.
Read full article - , Rotten Tomatometer ScoreBrian TallericoRogerEbert.com
Once we're able to see Harlin's new trilogy as a whole, “Chapter 1” might feel more essential to the 4.5-hour experience. Right now, it just feels overly familiar.
Read full article - , Rotten Tomatometer ScoreValerie ComplexDeadline Hollywood Daily
The Strangers: Chapter 1 is everything WRONG with the horror genre.
Read full article - , Rotten Tomatometer ScoreJohn SerbaDecider
Harlin’s approach to the material is dull and workmanlike.
Read full article - , Rotten Tomatometer ScoreIan BuntingDaily Record (UK)
... But nothing that’s added makes this any better, or more frightening, a movie than its predecessors.
Read full article - , Fresh Tomatometer ScoreFausto FernandezFotogramas
Concentric twists and harrowing repetition of situations occur as if in a dream, despite its dirty realism... [Full review in Spanish]
Read full article - , Rotten Tomatometer ScoreEmma VineLoud and Clear Reviews
The Strangers: Chapter 1, doesn’t give viewers much hope for the future. Instead, the latest entry is an uninspired, ineffective retelling of the original, with a narrative that strives to give us answers to questions we never asked for.
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