Intruders - Film Review

Film Review by Rachel Flanagan.

What at first appears to be a dramatic relationship that ends in loss and turns into a standard home invasion thriller is twisted into something slightly more sinister but even that is a little transformed in Intruders (formerly called 'Shut in" while on the festival circuit), the directorial debut by Adam Schindler. Intruders will take the viewer on a complex game of cat and mouse left wondering which one is really the victim of the story. An intriguing story with a cast of characters will keep you guessing until the very end.

The movie poster paints a picture of a house filled with devices of torture hidden below and the trailer reveals the twist that maybe the victim is not actually locked in with the intruders but that the intruders are likely locked in with the victim.  This is one of those movies where you think you know what is going to happen but then you careen down a different twisted path toward another ending that you were not quite expecting.  Intruders greets you with Anna (Beth Riesgraf) and her dying brother, Conrad (Timothy McKinney.  Anna, it seems, cannot leave the house as she suffers from a debilitating case of agoraphobia and her brother Conrad and a seemingly nice meals on wheels person (Rory Culkin) are some of her only connections to any semblance of a life outside of her house.  The house, it seems, is both a comfort and a prison.  After Anna's brother passes away, she suddenly finds herself playing cat and mouse with the intruders, ringleader JP (Jack Kesy), unsure and timid Vance (Joshua Mikel) and wildcard Perry (Martin Starr). Right when you think it's over, when Anna can no longer sneak her way through each room of the house without getting caught, the plot thickens as Anna now finds herself in control and the intruders find themselves scrambling for a way out and an answer.

Some viewers might find the film a bit contrived with the ultimate surprises a little less than shocking but no person and no story is always what it seems. Anna may be a shut-in and a slave to her fears but that does not mean she is weak and her panic will win over leaving herself to continue to be a victim. Intruders may not send the viewer flying to their doors to double check all of the locks or fleeing to their own panic room but no one will walk away feeling like they've seen this already and that someone else has been there and done that.   If you are a fan of the home invasion sub-genre and interested in a twisted new take and storyline, you will certainly appreciate what Intruders offers.