Critical Capsule: The Strangers - Prey at Night

The Strangers was a scary and effective horror film that had an unsettling realism about it. Now, we have the sequel that I don’t think anyone was really asking for, bearing the subtitle Prey at Night. The best thing I can say about this movie is that it has some well shot sequences. The movie itself seemed intent on doing nothing like the first one, thus defeating the purpose. Rather than terrifying the characters, it was more about terrifying the audience with unearned jump scares. On one level, I can sort of enjoy this, but then I get distracted by the terrible choices made by those behind the camera. It is as if they are seeking to undermine the elements that made the first so effective. In many ways I hated this movie.

Movie Review: 47 Meters Down

It seems like shark movies are making a comeback, and no, I am not talking about SyFy outings like Three-Headed Shark Attack, Sharktopus, or even Avalanche Sharks. It appears the killer fish are once again making a killing on the big screen, following the success of last year’s Blake Lively fetish film, The Shallows, we now have 47 Meters Down, and next year we get to see Meg. Is it possible we are seeing the next golden age of sharks to rival the dawn of Jaws? Probably not, and I haven’t seen anything yet to top The Last Shark. Still, The Shallows was decent and I really enjoyed 47 Meters Down. It is far from perfect, but when it is on, it does the deed.