Post by StevePulaski on Aug 24, 2013 13:25:41 GMT -5
You're Next (2013)
Directed by: Adam Wingard
Directed by: Adam Wingard
The three murderers in You're Next.
Rating: ★★★½
Adam Wingard's You're Next is a nasty little genre-exercise, and it's one I wouldn't mind watching again anytime soon. It's directed, written, and executed with a clear devotion to the films that paved the way for the modern horror genre, and lead by a cast of independent filmmakers (and directed by one who has proven his love for the genre), it wins a longtime fan of the genre over completely. How many horror films can you say showcase stylish deaths and violence while also showcasing the desire for simple-minded, human gratification? The film features more identifiable commentary than June's underwhelming thriller The Purge.
Wingard's latest endeavors have been with the horror anthology franchise V/H/S, both films being a showcase for independent talents to show off their aptitude for the genre. I responded to both of Wingard's segments in those films with admiration, as I saw that he was a very competent talent who clearly knew what worked and what didn't in terms of horror. In You're Next, he gets ninety-four minutes to show off his style, taking the tiresome home-invasion plot to a new level with strong twists and scenes of gruesome brutality that come off as slick and stylish rather than mean-spirited and soulless.
The story revolves around a family reconnecting at their old vacation house in the middle of the woods. This much we already know if we've seen this type of film enough times. The family consists of the mother and father (Barbara Crampton and Rob Moran), their kids (Joe Swanberg, A.J. Bowen, Amy Seimetz, and Nicholas Tucci), and the kids' significant others (Sharni Vinson, Wendy Glenn, Margaret Laney, and Ti West). During dinner one night, one of them notices something by the window, and is immediately struck in the head by an arrow shot the window. The family panics and runs around the home, trying to board up windows and doors, some of them being shot in the process, making for a horrifically bloody affair. Wingard and writer Simon Barrett waste no time with the material and allow it to move briskly, with constant mayhem and violence, but never losing its sense of tension and suspense. Just the thought of being in a ramshackle home with an unknown number of masked-goons outside, shooting arrows from a crossbow trying to kill you with an unknown motive is frightening, and Wingard makes it a startling affair for the audience.
Some characters choose to sit and wait, some bravely run out there (another attempts but doesn't even make it out the front door), and some take matters into their own hands, constructing Home Alone-esque traps in order to combat against the vicious attacks of those outside. The lack of characterization to these people is a bummer, but it's a blessing to know they're not the sourest bunch of horror movie characters we've ever seen. They crack jokes, they argue at times, they play with each other, etc. Just the fact that we see people like Bowen and Seimetz, or Swanberg and West (both independent filmmakers who worked on a segment for the original V/H/S) will put a smile on anyone's face who has followed underground cinema these last few years. There's a hilarious scene in the film that comes when the entire family is around the dinner table, and Swanberg's Drake is asking West's Tariq what it's like to be an independent documentary filmmaker. "I showed my film at an underground film festival," Tariq states, to which Drake replies, "Underground? What is that? Is it shown underground?"
Barrett makes the humor subtle and not outright centered on sex and ridiculous activities conducted by twentysomethings. The humor comes from subtle cracks at each other and not from the typical events of horror films where you can tell they want you to laugh. Barrett also, wisely, refrains from making the humor contrast abruptly with the violence and gore, making him a cautious writer in a genre which is driven by reckless violence. There's no style to the content, no grace in the material, and no investment in the project. Everyone involved here seems to be having fun and that's another thing that counts in a horror film.
From the first kill you can tell Wingard knows exactly what he is doing in terms of showcasing the deaths of the characters in the film. When the arrow goes through the character's skull, making it the first kill of the film, before showing the body collapse like a ragdoll, Wingard adopts a minimalist style of showing the broken window, the family's reaction, and the dripping blood before showing the physical body crumbling. That kind of suspense is invaluable to a film like this.
How easy it would've been for You're Next to be typical horror-fare, relying on excess rather than structure and energy. There is gore, there is a lot of violence, and there is a lot of brutality, but thanks to Wingard's direction and Barrett's careful writing, this doesn't seem like a morose, hopeless genre-endeavor. It's one of the most fun times I've had at the movies this year, which is more that can be said for most comedies.
Starring: Barbara Crampton, Rob Moran, Joe Swanberg, A.J. Bowen, Amy Seimetz, Nicholas Tucci, Sharni Vinson, Wendy Glenn, Margaret Laney, Ti West, Simon Barrett, L.C. Holt, and Lane Hughes. Directed by: Adam Wingard.