Commentary by Collin Stroup
Director: Adam Wingard
Stars: Dan Stevens, Sheila Kelley, Maika Monroe
Available on Amazon Instant Streaming, Netflix DVD and DVD and Blu-Ray
The Guest is one of those movies that you just keep hearing about if you follow film. With only a limited run in theaters and film festivals it sure got its fair share of praise. I don’t typically review movies that come out on DVD, but this movie garnered a bit of an exception.
The Petersons have suffered a terrible loss. Their son died overseas while serving in the army and as they attempt to move on, a young man named David (Dan Stevens) shows up at their door. David claims to have served with the Peterson’s son and was with him when he died. The film wastes absolutely no time setting all of this up within the first 5 minutes before we dive into this homage to 80’s action thrillers set in modern day America.
The 80s style film revival may be getting tiresome, but with some surprisingly great performances, especially from Dan Stevens, a great soundtrack and a competent sense of direction, it manages to breathe some fresh air into the genre. Instead of taking the easy route and playing up the 80’s movie vibe too much with neon lights and synth soundtracks, which it definitely has, The Guest took a different route. With pacing more akin to a 50’s noir, mystery film and a plot reminiscent of a 70’s conspiracy thriller, it managed to really set itself apart.
While the film did have a couple moments of repetitiveness showing how clever David is and a few moments of predictable plot points, they never really feel too out of place or take away from the flow of the film. While I suspect this is one of those love it or hate it kind of movies, I had a great time kicking back and absorbing some great escapist nonsense.
3 out of 5 stars
