Intruders (2015) (Review)

Title: Intruders
Director: Adam Schindler
Writers:  T.J. Cimfel, David White
Cast: Beth Riesgraf, Rory Culkin, Leticia Jimenez, Jack Kesy, Timothy T. McKinney
Year: 2015
Min: 90

Beautiful Anna (Beth Riesgraf) lives with her brother who is bed-ridden and dying from cancer, until one night, in which he passes away. She is left with an amount of money that so large that she tries to give some of it to the young and kind deliveryman (Rory Culkin), who refuses it. When it is time to go to her brother's funeral, she does not attend it and instead stays home, which saddens her, deeply. But, that is the least of her problems as three men looking for the aforementioned money break into her house. They thought she would be at the funeral, so are surprised to find her in the house. They soon discover that she suffers from a crippling case of agoraphobia, fear of the outside. So much so that even when she has the chance to escape she doesn't. Thus, she is trapped in the house by them, but they have underestimated her.

Intruders is an intense and excellently acted home invasion horror flick that turns the sub-genre on its ears. I haven't seen any movie that takes this type of story into this route. The results are refreshing and shows that adding a few things here and there makes a story that looks predictable, into something different and new. Intruders works best the less you know of it. The trailer reveals A LOT, so unlike my other reviews, I didn't post it here. In fact, DO NOT SEE THE TRAILER BEFORE WATCHING THIS FILM!

The script by T.J. Cimfel and David White is filled with twists and turns. The little revelations keep adding to the story. Under lesser hands these may have come off as ridiculous but everything is handled with an air of the believable. Everything that happens in the course of the film works and makes sense.

Director Adam Schindler keeps things intense. He builds tension well, especially when it comes to Anna. We fear for her, even when it looks like she might have the upper hand, we are never sure that she fully does. The climax is exciting and edge of your seat intense. Schindler doesn't have a problem with graphic violence. Although the body count is relatively small, the bloodletting comes hard and, at times, shocking.

The other major draw is the acting. Our villains are suitably despicable, in vary degrees throughout the film. They play their roles with the right amount of menace. Meanwhile, Rory Culkin gives a nuanced performance as Dan the delivery boy and is given a lot to do emotionally.

But, it is the beautiful and talented Beth Riesgraf who gives a tour de force performance, here. She is simply wonderful in the complex role of Anna. Sometimes we fear her, other times we feel for her, then we may feel sorry for her, but mostly we genuinely fear for her well being. We cheer Anna on, even though there is a moral grey area the film hits. It is all so well handled by Riesgraf who gives her everything when doing even the most emotional of scenes, that she just draws and sucks into the film fully.

Intruders shows that by adding twists and turns an old story can be new again. Suspenseful, emotional, and violent the movie plays on many emotions and feelings throughout its duration and does it all solidly. Starring a great cast of mostly unknowns, it is headlined by its immensely talented heroine. The movie is bound to draw comparisons to last year's hit on NetFlix, Hush. While, I did like that flick, I think Intruders is more emotionally challenging and complex. I caught this movie on Chiller TV and highly recommend that you see it as well.

3.5 out of 4