‘I’m a soldier, man. I like guns...’
The idea of an interloper has always been a terrifying one. The thought of someone entering the family home and settling in like mould on bread is unsettling, to say the least. We’ve all seen the Netflix documentaries. The fly in the ointment. The fox in the henhouse. How well do we really know anyone? The Guest plays with this concept and does so with a sinister grin and a knowing glare…
David (Dan Stevens) arrives at the Peterson house one day and claims to be acquainted with their eldest son Caleb who was killed in action. Caring mother Laura (Sheila Kelly) and hapless father Spencer (Leland Orser) take David into their home where he befriends their grown-up daughter Anna (Maika Monroe) and their bullied teenage son Luke (Brendan Meyer). Before long, people start to turn up dead.
I’ve been dubious about the work of Ti West before but there is no denying that he is capable of creating single scenes that hold real power. While You’re Next doesn’t fully hang together as a feature film, numerous moments within that film demonstrate how innovative West can be when he’s not getting in the way of himself. The Guest isn’t quite as imaginative as the aforementioned but it does hold together better, even as the third act becomes more and more deranged. Indeed, the final moments of the film recall De Palma at his most daring – something that can be both a blessing and a curse. Happily, The Guest leans more towards the former than the latter.
Elsewhere, it’s satisfying to see Monroe delivering a great performance in a genre film just like she did in It Follows but it is Stevens who carries this movie. His permagrin and inscrutable demeanour give off the air of a man who always knows something that the other characters don’t. It’s both disarming and somehow sinister all at the same time.
While You’re Next seems to receive most of the plaudits, The Guest is a more accomplished and effective film. Gripping.