Film Of The Week: YOU'RE NEXT (2013)
SYNOPSIS:
When a gang of masked, ax-wielding murderers descend upon the Davison family reunion, the hapless victims seem trapped… until an unlikely guest of the family proves to be the most talented killer of all.
REVIEW:
I don’t normally watch horror movies, but I decided to give You’re Next a try. Some horror films definitely have an action-oriented appeal to them, and so if I do see a horror movie, those are the ones I normally go for. That said, the concept used for this type of film stood out to me in a way that allowed me to enjoy this latest film from director Adam Wingard.
The following evening when everyone arrives with other third-party guests, everything that should have added to a joyful family getaway turns into blood-coated chaos, when dinner is gravely interrupted by a small gang of masked killers armed with machetes, axes and crossbows. Of course, in typical horror movie fashion, with the entire family seemingly desperate to survive, one wrong decision leads to another, followed by another and another, which of course increases the body count, and only a handful of survivors are left. And just when you may have thought the plot would continue to be linear, alas, there is a twist in the plot that boils down to murder, greed, lust and envy, leaving this incident to be more than just a home invasion. However, when the killers least expect it, there’s no huge waiting period before watching the film’s seemingly unlikely heroine kick into survival mode almost immediately, revealing a side to her no one knew, not even her boyfriend.
I’m not a huge horror film buff, despite having seen a few in my own life. But to my point here though, what I really love most is how action-oriented it feels. Sure, there are moments of suspense and thrills, and some moments of predictability that make you roll your eyes. And that’s pretty much any horror film. But the biggest scenes with the most fun are with Vinson while she is evening the score against the killers, wounding them, maiming them from time to time with booby traps, and getting down and dirty and finishing them off.
On its plot, the film delivers such a tasteful film focusing on a variety of moments illustrating the extremes of a family carrying a façade of politeness that thinly veils their inner feelings, causing tensions to boil over and revealing that even the most well-to-do family has issues of its own. All of this sets up a great formula for a story that delivers an intense, horrific survival thriller about a woman caught in the middle of a deadly situation that turns out to be way more than it is on its face.
4th time watching You’re Next – this time spent it introducing the film to mates back home in UK. http://t.co/2fn617CACL
— Gareth Evans (@ghuwevans) August 29, 2013
Native New Yorker. Been writing for a long time now, and I enjoy what I do. Be nice to me!