Movie of the week – The Strangers: Prey at Night
In this nostalgia obsessed era it’s not a surprise for a sequel to arrive a full decade after the original movie, but what’s surprising is that The Strangers: Prey at Night is far more satisfying than the first 2008 instalment. The masked murderers return to terrorise a young family at a trailer park this time, and while the film suffers from a lack of interesting characters, director Johannes Roberts fashions some impressive old school set-pieces without ever relying on gimmicky jump scares.
Lean on Pete
Rising star Charlie Plummer (All the Money in the World) plays a troubled teen who forms a bond with a broken down racehorse in Lean on Pete. It’s a movie of two halves – the first a charming and engaging workplace drama with a great Steve Buscemi performance, the second a patronising and stereotypical look at working class rural America. Maybe wait for the similarly themed but far superior The Rider later this year.
Best F(r)iends
The mad genius behind The Room, Tommy Wiseau, and his star Greg Sestero reunite in Best F(r)iends, a comic thriller which receives its Irish premiere on Saturday at the Lighthouse. Sestero, who wrote the film’s script, will be in attendance for a Q+A.
By Eric Hillis of themoviewaffler.com
