The Guest Review

Rated R (Strong Violence, Language, Some Drug Use and a Scene of Sexuality)

Running Time: 1 Hour & 39 Minutes

Cast-

Dan Stevens-David Collins

Maika Monroe-Anna Peterson

Brendan Meyer-Luke Peterson

Sheila Kelley-Laura Peterson

Leland Orser-Spencer Peterson

Lance Reddick-Major Carver

Chase Williamson-Zeke

Joel David Moore-Craig

Tabatha Shaun-Kristen

Directed by Adam Wingard

Director Adam Wingard and writer Simon Barrett take viewers on a roller-coaster thrill ride with "The Guest."

Note: Screened on Tuesday, September 16, 2014 at Williamsburg Cinemas.

Director-writer duo Adam Wingard and Simon Barrett certainly have a thing for terrorizing innocent families. Equal parts dysfunctional family dramedy and home invasion thriller, last year's "You're Next" was one of the biggest surprises of the summer, a vivacious, blood-soaked romp that brazenly mixes on-screen mayhem with a twisted sense of humor. Exuberantly received during its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2011, Wingard's low-budget slasher flick unfortunately sat on the shelf for close to two years after Lionsgate acquired the distribution rights, with its release put on-hold due to the studio's ongoing merger with Summit Entertainment. Such scheduling nightmares are thankfully absent for Wingard's latest feature "The Guest." A gleeful, nostalgic homage to the grindhouse exploitation films of the 1980s, "The Guest" is a gripping and wickedly entertaining thriller that's destined to become a cult classic with its punchy synth score, giddily over-the-top violence, and most memorable of all—Dan Stevens' indelibly charismatic performance.

Recently discharged soldier David Collins (Dan Stevens) makes his way toward a small prairie town in New Mexico in order to fulfill a promise to close friend and comrade-in-arms Caleb Peterson, who was killed in combat while the two were serving overseas together. Still struggling over the loss of her eldest son, Caleb's mother Laura (Sheila Kelley) welcomes David into her home when he shows up out of the blue and invites him to stay for the night. Her stressed-out and overworked husband Spencer (Leland Orser) initially views his new houseguest warily as he fears that David might be suffering from some form of PTSD but he quickly warms up to him after the former soldier lends a sympathetic ear while he vents his frustrations over a bottle of beer. David is soon invited to stay indefinitely, with the handsome, polite, and soft-spoken war veteran ingratiating himself with the family by helping around the house and bonding with their bullied teen son Luke (Brendan Meyer). Anna (Maika Monroe), the Petersons' twenty-year-old daughter, is the only one who keeps herself distant from David's charms despite being obviously attracted to him. After overhearing him make a suspicious phone call, Anna decides to do some digging into David's past and discovers that not all is what it seems.

British actor Dan Stevens delivers a charming and creepy performance as the titular guest David Collins.

The opening scene: a man, glimpsed from behind and wearing heavy combat boots, is jogging down an empty road through a desert. Suddenly, the title card—written in large purple "Exorcist"-style lettering on a simple black background—slams into view over a blaring synth. The next shot, accompanied by another alarming blast of scary music, shows a scarecrow with a grinning pumpkin head lording over a desert field. Three shots in, we already know what we're in for with "The Guest" and that we're about to have a hell of a bloody good time. Although this is ostensibly a thriller, the film falls into several genres and contains aspects of drama, horror, action, dark comedy, and even a dash of sci-fi, all blended together into a demented concoction that could've easily devolved into a tonal mess but Wingard has already proven himself to be a master in navigating such conflicting tones with "You're Next." Take for example a tense scene where Anna has just discovered that her friend Craig (Joel David Moore) has just been killed and that her pot-dealing boyfriend Zeke (Chase Williamson) is the prime suspect in the murder. Already suspicious of her new houseguest, she accuses him in front of her family of being an imposter and the way David stops chopping the vegetables and calmly explains himself—while casually waving the kitchen knife around!—is both hilarious and menacing all at the same time. The entire film is like this, with comic moments arriving in the most unexpected places, such as when David, his true identity now blown, casually blows up a small diner with a pair of grenades. In fact, the character's nonchalance while committing horrible acts of violence is a frequent source of humor. This is a difficult feat to pull off yet Wingard and Barrett accomplish it with gleeful aplomb.

The revelation of David's identity is patently ridiculous and is the film's only misstep but it's fortunately easy to overlook thanks to the tour-de-force final act. Utilizing hazy, neon visuals reminiscent of Nicolas Winding Refn's "Drive," Wingard pits David and 'Final Girl' Anna in a deadly cat-and-mouse game set in an elaborate Halloween haunted-house maze at a local high school while Annie's 2009 synth pop song Anthonio (the 'Berlin Breakdown' version) blares in the background…because why the hell not? Suffice to say, it's an awesome sequence and you can almost hear Wingard and Barrett giddily high-fiving each other behind the camera. "The Guest" wears its cinematic influences, specifically John Carpenter, on its sleeve and while some directors who do this can't help but constantly wink at the audience, it's never in any doubt that Wingard is less than authentic. He has genuine respect for the grindhouse exploitation flicks of the 80s yet rather than simply create a pastiche, he makes it his own.

Maika Monroe makes for a fantastic 'Final Girl' as Anna.

Of course, "The Guest" wouldn't be half as good if it weren't for Dan Stevens' fantastic performance. Primarily known for his role as Matthew Crawley on ITV's "Downton Abbey," Stevens is absolutely mesmerizing to watch as his character subtly goes from charming to menacing, frequently in the same scene. It's a challenging part to play because the British actor needs to maintain some semblance of likability while also giving off a threatening vibe. Wingard utilizes Stevens' steely blue gaze and washboard abs for maximum effect, seductively drawing viewers in even though they know that something is amiss. The rest of the supporting cast is just as excellent, with Sheila Kelley and Leland Orser playing the part of grieving wife and overworked husband incredibly well. You can't help but feel sorry for their characters. As bullied teen Luke, Brendan Meyer effectively conveys his character's growing fascination with David while Maika Monroe makes for an outstanding Final Girl as Anna. The angst-ridden character is the only one to proactively act on her suspicions and she earns our sympathy with her increasingly perilous plight. "The Guest" may be a roller-coaster thrill ride but Monroe takes the material seriously, even when it goes really over-the-top in the haunted-house finale.

Premiering at the Sundance Film Festival back in January and currently in limited release, "The Guest" has received glowing reviews with 93% on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics praised it for 'boasting enough intelligence to bolster its darkly violent thrills' and that it 'offers another treat for genre fans from director Adam Wingard.' I'll admit, this film wasn't even remotely on my radar and I only went to the advance screening out of boredom. I'm very glad I did because this is such an oddball picture and for one to be so good is a rare feat indeed. While the audience at the aforementioned screening clearly enjoyed the film, it's hard to say how the rest of the general public will react. Despite excellent word-of-mouth from multiple festival screenings, "You're Next" came and went without making so much as a blip at the domestic box office. It feels like a similar fate awaits "The Guest" but I hope I'm wrong because this is one of the most fun theatrical experiences I've had in quite a while.

Final Rating: 4.5 out of 5

"What the F*CK?!" (This is the last line in the film.)