You're Next - A new wave of horror.

  You're Next – A new wave of horror.

PLOT -

When the Davison family comes under attack during their wedding anniversary getaway, the gang of mysterious killers soon learns that one of victims harbors a secret talent for fighting back.

LOWDOWN -

Home invasion scares the utter shit out of me. In fact I would say that probably is the most terrifying thing in the entire world. I'll be the first to admit, I'm a complete pussy when it comes to that sort of thing. I'm a flight kind of gal instead of fight. I honestly can't tell you how many times I've freaked out alone in my house whenever I hear the doorbell or see a car park out front. I usually scream and run down the hall locking myself in the bathroom only to find out it was a neighbor just ringing the bell to say I've left my car lights on. = Fail.

So back this spring when I dragged my poor father to go see the Evil Dead remake with me, I was instantly interested when I saw the trailer for You're Next.

I decided not to closely follow the making and hype of this movie as months passed. Maybe it's because I've gotten older but I really hate having certain movies I'm interested in being spoiled for me. So, I sat back and waited and right away couldn't wait to view this movie as soon as fellow bloggers, and friends wrote positive reviews for this movie and sported those awake fox, lamb, and wolf masks from Monster Mania!

Well this past weekend my good friend Melissa flew in from Chicago to celebrate my 25^th birthday. This past Friday after cruising around I decided to be lame and drag her to the movies. Besides two other people, we were the only one there. Right away I knew we were in for a treat!

Like I said I find home invasion terrifying. Movies like The Strangers scare the hell out of me. Just the idea of people wearing masks, breaking into you're house to kill you. Yeah...no thanks. No wonder I was always bothered by the opening scene in Scream. This movie believe it or not reminded me of this old 1980's made for TV movie I used to watch as a kid called Fortress. In which a school teacher and some children are kidnapped by a group of men wearing animal masks. The second I saw the You're Next trailer pleasant and weird childhood memories came flooding back when I used to watch that movie. Plus that trailer song was killer!

Well, I really haven't gotten into this new wave of movies/filmmakers that have just really become popular. Such as the House Of The Devil, Innkeepers, VHS/VHS2 movies. The directors/actors all seem legit and I love that they homage old school horror. In fact I had been dying to watch all these movies since it seemed as if a new band of guys came along to make fresh new horror that had the style/music/and story lines we all grew up loving. I feel the era of the splat pack is over. Now a new band of guys have come along who I like to call the homage guys. They homage and pay tribute to these classics and craft and shape brand new movies that honor the films that inspired them. 

I hate to nitpick but I really wasn't a fan of the dialog and acting for the most part in this movie. I know it was supposed to pay tribute to movies from the 70's and 80's where the acting and writing wasn't exactly stellar, but I found a few moments down right cringe worthy and very distracting. In all honestly besides that and one other small thing I'll bring up in a second, I really liked the movie!

My friend Melissa thought other wise but our movie tastes aren't exactly alike. I like movies like this, it seemed refreshing to see an idea like this for once since the last couple of horror movies I've seen at the movies have been less than disappointing besides The Conjuring. First off the music was really awesome. The Lou Reed trailer sound was wonderful and even though it was very annoying and stayed in my head for the rest of the weekend, I did find that Magic song pretty catchy! What can I say? I'm a sucker for movie soundtracks. I also found the score very well done. In fact in a few moments the score went old school and reminded me of some early 80's movies. I know that's exactly where they were going with this and it worked perfectly!

Another brief thing that I sorta had a a problem with was the “final girl”. I like seeing a girl fight back. In fact it's down right refreshing. In the 80's we began getting final girls who for once fought back (Nightmare On Elm Street, Just Before Dawn, The Stepfather, ect.) I found this a tad bit overdone. I mean I loved the lead girl's character. She was a smart thinker and they did explain why she was fighting back the way she did. Still, there were a few moments where I felt they were trying a little too hard. Just her standing with her weapons, with the score booming. I know they were trying to paint this image and for the most part it did work, but eh...I don't know maybe it was just me. 

The setting was gorgeous! That house is seriously insane. Also the beautiful scenic shots really kept my eyes glued to the screen. I found the cast besides a few really bad acting moments (we can blame the script maybe?) likeable. In fact I couldn't believe that was Barbara Crampton playing the mother! She still looks gorgeous! I loved the entire family. Pretty much a typical dysfunctional, screwed up all American family. I love how they kept that real that the wife's were bitches, the sons assholes, and something “off” about the mother and daughter. I loved a few of the lines between the brothers acting like jerks to each other, and of course that awesome diner scene before the shit hits the fan.

The pacing of this movie is very well done. There's this constant building tension that is unseen. Once the violence/action begins it doesn't let up. In fact I thought it was “cute” they added Ti West in the mix. What can I say? The man is very handsome.

I love how completely out of nowhere things begin and how terrifying it is. I loved the utter and complete panic that starts and the smart and really stupid things the characters do. The brother with the arrow in his back had me dying. I couldn't believe that I found him one of the more likeable characters even though he was a complete jerk for the most part of the beginning of the movie. My favorite part in the entire movie is when one of the characters go to “run” for the cars. I found this scene beautifully filmed and it even took me a second to truly grasp what happened to them when they try to run out the door.

I sorta guessed the twist a little before it was revealed but found it pretty down right clever. I liked the non-stop acting and the gore was nothing less than beautifier. Like I said I loved that entire house and how these characters are running around doing anything they can to fight back. There were some truly memorable moments in the film and a few really interesting twists and turns. Of course Melissa and myself lost it during a certain “blender” scene and when the lamb pretty much pulled a Home Alone and stepped on the boards with the nails. I really haven't laughed that hard in forever. Loved how quickly the movie began going, never letting up with the gore, kills, and scares. I'm really not the biggest fan with pointless blood and violence in movies but this delivered the goods! The ending was clever and I really walked out of there 50/50 on how I thought about the movie. A few days later after listening to the soundtrack and letting the movie sink in, I have to say I really wasn't disappointed besides a few minor things. This was a fun movie to watch and I'll most likely end up buying when it becomes released.

I did in fact go out and buy House Of The Devil last night and watched it. Review for that coming soon!

So all in all You're Next was the kind of movie I could enjoy. A fact paced silly bloody movie with some awesome animal masks. Why not!

4 Stars!