Hey gang, Valkor here. We all love a good theatrical trailer right?
I mean for the most part that's one of the main reasons why myself
and many others still enjoy the cinema experience – to watch trailers
of upcoming films. A well edited trailer sells you on a film long
before its release; it all but determines whether or not you'll
go see a film in theaters, by enticing you in a minute plus. Where
am I going with this? Well this next film I was all but sold on
it, based solely on the trailer. That's right, I was won over
on "You're Next" just by watching those dudes skulk around in
a those animal masks. But did the film deliver or will it be left
in the dust? Major spoilers ahead, so don't go forward if you
don't want to know anything about this film.
You're Next centers on the Davison family and friends who have gathered together for a bit of a reunion and a wedding anniversary. Things were going… somewhat ok. I mean what family doesn't have their share of tensions and family scuffles, right? Well the party is interrupted when a group of men, wearing animal masks, disrupt the gathering and start to kill them off one by one. What's the reason for the attack? It's all about money and how a couple of siblings look to get their hands on the family inheritance a little early. Only no one predicted that one non-member of the family, Erin (Sharni Vinson), was such a bad ass. She takes on all the bad guys and doesn't afraid of anything. But can she survive the night long enough until the cops, who have been alerted, arrive?
Usually a home invasion thriller is more about scaring the pants off of you or it's quite disturbing. Hell they can even be funny like the first two "Home Alone" films. The last flick I watched in this genre was "In Their Skin" and it gave me the chills. With "You're Next", it's not on the same level as the aforementioned film, but can it hold its own against it?
The Good:
Absolutely! Truth time: I wasn't sold on "You're Next" in the beginning; it was far too predictable and things sorta dragged. But as the film progressed, things started picking up, it became more exciting, chilling, with edge of your seat action until those final closing minutes when I could finally catch my breath. I really wanted to hate this film, but after sitting through it I was sold. Again, the pacing is sluggish at first but you really need to stick with it because it has a nice payoff at the end. The story is easy to follow and it doesn't take too long for the action to kick in. There's a certain level of creepy that flows through the film, especially when dealing with the mask assailants, specifically when you catch them in a reflection or when they're looking down on their prey from above. Anytime they make an unexpected appearance, I got the chills. The acting is rock solid, but there's isn't too much acting that needs to be done since all the major players need do is run, hide, scream and die. Sharni Vinson looks like she is ready to take her place amongst female bad asses such as Milla Jovovich and Michelle Rodriguez. It's when her character becomes the sole survivor does all her mad skillz kick in and her bad assness ensues as she sets traps and takes out the baddies one by one. Love it! You're Next isn't as chilling as the trailer makes it out to be, but damn did it turn out to be a lot of fun.
The Bad:
The film is very predictable in the beginning- annoyingly predictable. I was almost tempted to walk out on this one. For instance, you can easily figure out the motivation of the bad guys, though you may not know the players involved. Then again maybe you'll be able to figure that one out as well. And you'd probably be right.
The Ugly:
Blender to the brain! Dude took a BLENDER to the BRAIN!!!
You're Next is still making the theatrical rounds, but if it's still available in your next of the woods I'd say go for it. It has a rough start but it does have a satisfying ending. And out of TOV 5 stars, I'm giving You're Next a 4. Now, where can I get one of those masks?
