Review of The Guest (2014) by Skyler G — 27 Nov 2014

The Guest (2014) - Calling all genre fans! ahem.. You might want to look into this one. "The Guest" stars Dan Stevens, Lance Reddick, Brendan Meyer and Maika Monroe in this genre bending mystery, horror/thriller. The Peterson family receive a mysterious guest in a soldier named David (Dan Stevens) claiming to be former friends with the families son who died in action. A series of strange deaths starts turning up in conjunction with David's arrival as things aren't as they seem with the mild mannered stranger. The film is directed by Adam Wingard who crafted last year's surprise horror hit "You're Next".

To summarize the plot of this film aloud or on paper just simply does not do it sufficient justice as "The Guest" may be one of my personal favourite movies of the year for so many good reasons. First and foremost, this is one bad-ass leading performance from Dan Stevens (Downton Abbey). The British actors accent is completely absent and in its place is a calm, cool, well mannered but cold individual. There's a layer of sympathy you get from Steven's that makes you buy the affect he has over anyone he comes in contact with. This is furthermore punctuated by the movies many twists and turns. What I really appreciated was how well this movie integrated a seemingly formulaic plot structure and turned it on its head; making it not only entertaining as hell but unpredictable.

The violence in the film is something that may turn audiences away in similar vein to 2011's "Drive". It's fast paced, relentless and gorey as sin itself. There's something charming about this movie's unwillingness to plead to the masses that I quite liked. It's a genre film first and boy does it ever steep itself in it gloriously. It's soaked in the 80's which not only is reflected in the shooting style but the music. My god, I never ran to itunes so fast in my life after hearing the musical score to this feature. It's laced with synth electronic pop and techno that adds an extra pulse to a film that already won me over in its concept alone. The movie reminds me a lot of John Carpenter when he was in his prime in the 80s. Oh... And did I mention that this movie is set at Halloween... Well, if I didn't, trust me the movie will remind you. There isn't one shot that doesn't have the fall season and holiday in the frame. Whether it be the decorations, jack-o-lanterns or the film's overwhelmingly fun climax; Halloween makes its presence known, which is probably why it had such a profound effect on me (favourite holiday).

Look, I'm not going to over-sell this as the movie is just simply not going to appeal to everyone. As I said, it's a genre film first but a damn good one... Possibly one of the best. It has a rich style and air of coolness that most Hollywood movies wish they could achieve. Some of the mixed acting cheapens the production a bit, namely in the cases of the actors playing the Peterson parents. That said, this movie is a big winner in my books and will likely become a holiday staple. It's relentlessly violent, stylish and right up my alley. So for fans of thrillers, horror and all things 80s, definitely look into "The Guest" as a welcome presence in your movie watching future.

GRADE: A-.