The Guest

You will meet a tall dark stranger. He is polite, handsome and mysterious.

Oh and I forgot to mention, he's violent, manipulative and way too close to your children. What could possibly go wrong?

Brit heart-throb and one-time heir to an Earl Dan Stevens is David, a U.S. Marine who appears on the Peterson family doorstep to grieving mother Sheila Kelley and claiming to have served with her killed-in-action son, calling to check-in on the emotionally-charged homestead. He immediately settles in, his quiet charm and accessible facade allowing each family member (including over-looked father Leland Orser and bullied outsider brother Brendan Meyer) to open up and confide in him, with only breakaway rebel sister Maika Monroe reacting more slowly to his cool advances. 

And then he takes his shirt off.

That may be an over simplification of her change in opinion, as a series protective acts and surrogate-brotherly conversations help to wear down her icy exterior, and David slowly gains her admiration, if not her trust. As an audience, for forty-five minutes there's little evidence that this is anything less than a family drama exploring love, loss and PTSD, and then, like watching a shark blink, David doesn't. The first moment he is alone he does...nothing. He sits. He stares. And that charming smile slowly fades away.

To describe any more would be unfair, and one of the movies greatest strengths is it's ability to shock and surprise and do so with a wry devilish grin. Dan Stevens is excellent, his semi-mute David a walking construct, absorbing energy and information, and as with all energy when absorbed it must be expelled, somewhere, somehow. And on someone. Maika Monroe is a breakout star, her maturity and naivety the core journey of the piece, her reticence, acceptance and subsequent resourcefulness our gateway into this world, and the rest of the family are subtley and gamely played by the small ensemble of cast members (the superb Lance Reddick, with his killer combination of Greatest Stare and Gravest Voice, pops in for a visit).

With so much mystery hanging around, the number one question is motive, and it runs as a twisted thread through every part of the narrative. Every new introduction is accompanied by the question: why? Answers come, of course, usually followed by more 'why's' which can intrigue and infuriate at times. It's a deftly handled darkly black thriller-comedy, director Adam Wingard and writer-collaborator Simon Barrett combining these complimenting tones to great effect, but as a conspiracy thriller it is a little lost. While most answers are satisfying some 'why's' are answered with a 'who cares' and other times a swift 'huh?', leading to a little baggy and uneven middle third. After a ripped-open reveal the return to suburban disharmony is a little disappointing and the slow unnerving tension difficult to recapture. 

Thankfully Wingard does, and the dark horror finale is routinely hilarious and chilling, and effortlessly cool. It's greatest strength is an unnerving tone with a knowing glint, and accompanied by a too-cool-for-school electronica soundtrack that really pounds in amongst the lights and flashes, it provides a satisfying conclusion as it cranks up the crazy. Comparisons have been made to Winding-Refn's Drive, and while both feature silent blue-eyed anti-heroes and a retro score, the simple truth is The Guest dares to be a little more different and enjoy itself compared to the more sombre Drive. 

So while it attempts maybe a little too much genre-wise, for smarts and smiles and a rollicking good time, this tall, handsome stranger is welcome anytime.

--------------------------------------------

Director: Adam Wingard

Featuring: Dan Stevens, Lance Reddick, Leyland Orser, Maika Monroe, Sheila Kelley