Title:
The Guest
Director: Adam Wingard
Released: 2014
Starring: Dan Stevens, Maika Monroe, Leland
Orser, Sheila Kelley, Brendan Meyer, Lance Reddick
Plot: The Peterson’s are still struggling
to deal with the loss of their eldest son Caleb, who was killed in action while
serving in Afghanistan. However when David (Stevens), a soldier who claims to
have served with Caleb turns up unexpectedly on their doorstep, he initially
appears to help provide them with closure, while they remain unaware that he
hides more than a few dark secrets.
Review: Here we have one of those films
which for one reason or another exploded into the attention of the blogging / cult cinema fan
collective so that for a period it seemed that all everyone was talking about this
film, so much so it seemed that I couldn’t log onto my Facebook without seeing at least
one post about it. At the same time it has also become an incredible fun film
to come up with analogies for as D.J. from “Simplistic Reviews” described it as
“Halloween if Michael Myers was Jason Bourne”, while Greg of the “DebatablePodcast” gave me the equally great “Rambo: First Blood, if Rambo was a C.K.
model”. As for myself though I saw this film more as “Terminator as directed by John Carpenter”.
Seemingly coming out of nowhere this a film
which manages to be fiercely original while at the same time retro throwback to
the John Carpenter movies of the 80’s which hits you right from the title card
and synth heavy soundtrack as here director Adam Wingard proves that his previous film and standout
Mumblegore entry “Your're Next” wasn’t a fluke while at the same time clearly not
wanting to try something different rather than try an duplicate his previous
film.
Starting off as a little bit of a slow burn
as David randomly shows up on the doorstep of the Peterson’s, he is polite and
well spoken, while sympathetic to the loss of their son, who while claiming to
know him doesn’t seem to have any emotional attachment to the Peterson’s lost
son. Despite perhaps seemingly a little off
the mother Laura (Kelley) invites him to stay with the family, hoping it
seems that it will help to heal some of the wounds left by her son’s death and
its not long before David has worked his way firmly into the family.
Of course its not long before things start
to seem a little off with this houseguest as David’s true self starts to slowly
reveal itself as he helps out both of the Peterson’s children, first by helping
Luke (Meyer) deal with a group of bullies while saving Anna’s friend Kristen
(Shaun) from her aggressive ex-boyfriend. Both are issues he resolves with
maximum violence and an icy cold disregard for the aftermath of his actions
which makes these action scenes so great to watch especially when David
despatches them with such ease and almost robotic style, it’s easy to understand
why so many other critics have been so quick to draw comparisons to “The
Terminator”. That being said David is not a mindless thug as in the aftermath
of him beating the hell out of the bullies who have been taunting Luke,
trashing the local bar in the process he uses his knowledge of the law to
blackmail the bar owner into now reporting what happened, rather than the film
using the usual movie logic were actions come with no consequence unless it’s
important to the plot of the film.
The action scenes are all handled well with
Wingard managing to include a Peckinpah style shoot out without somehow
sacrificing the tone of the film. Its only made the more suprising to have this
scene, especially when the tone of the film is generally one of a slow burn thriller
and its Wingard’s refusal to stick to any one genre let alone his ability to
effortless switch between them is really one of the things which makes this
film so special, especially when combined with the films tight script which
knows exactly what to reveal and what to leave as a mystery and certainly when
it comes to aspects of the film such as David’s past it only further works to
the films advantage.
Performance wise this really is Steven’s
film as he holds your attention every time he’s on the screen with his model
looks, baby blues and well-spoken demeanour, while its clear that something
isn’t quite right about him. Of course when he does reveal his darker side its
just as believable as what was assumed to be the real him and never played with
any kind of over the top theatrics even when he goes full blown psycho. The
rest of the cast are equally enjoyable to watch though you can’t playing things
more toned down though Sheila Kelley is truly believable as the grieving
mother, struggling to deal with the loss of her son.
A great film which more than lives up to
its hype, while much like “Drive” borrows retro styling to truly make a unique
viewing experience and one which will leave you frustrated that there are not
more films like it. This is a film which is truly worth tracking down.
Hmm I thought of this more as a Nicholas Sparks novel adapted and directed by John Carpeneter. I agree Dan Stevens is good in the role, but he goes a bit too wacky all of a sudden for me towards the end. It wasnt as gradual as I would like. Still a good movie, and agree it is one that people should watch, . Makia Monroe from this movie and It Follows is an actress that is on my radar. She is very talented. Good Review
ReplyDeleteIt seems like everyone has their own analogy for what this film is as for Maia Monroe I liked her in this and look forward to seeing more of her when I finally get around to watching "It Follows".
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