This is a rather conventional home invasion horror story that fans of the genre will find familiar.
As horror goes, this has some thrills. The villains are scary, as is their pursuit of the inhabitants. And the house itself is a star, with rooms that are very visual and a plethora of corridors and hiding places. The lead character evolves from mousy and helpless to develop the grit to fight back.
The story follows a well-trodden path with a facade of originality. It gives no motivation to the villains, who take tremendous risks for little benefit. Law enforcement is laughably incompetent. Parents are predictably clueless. The kills aren't very gruesome and lack intensity and catharsis. Twists are predictable and unimpactful.
The story finishes predictably and satisfyingly enough--it's a journey, not a destination. But then, as if the filmmakers decided they wished they made the movie very differently, a whole separate scene is tacked onto the end that is completely over the top. Apparently the film found itself with an overabundance of casting extras and gory makeup to use up. Maybe the filmmakers are auditioning for a sequel.
As horror goes, this has some thrills. The villains are scary, as is their pursuit of the inhabitants. And the house itself is a star, with rooms that are very visual and a plethora of corridors and hiding places. The lead character evolves from mousy and helpless to develop the grit to fight back.
The story follows a well-trodden path with a facade of originality. It gives no motivation to the villains, who take tremendous risks for little benefit. Law enforcement is laughably incompetent. Parents are predictably clueless. The kills aren't very gruesome and lack intensity and catharsis. Twists are predictable and unimpactful.
The story finishes predictably and satisfyingly enough--it's a journey, not a destination. But then, as if the filmmakers decided they wished they made the movie very differently, a whole separate scene is tacked onto the end that is completely over the top. Apparently the film found itself with an overabundance of casting extras and gory makeup to use up. Maybe the filmmakers are auditioning for a sequel.