David Farnor | On 01, Jan 2015

Director: Adam Wingard
Cast: Dan Stevens, Maika Monroe, Brenda Meyer
Certificate: 15

“Mrs. Peterson?” asks the stranger on her doorstep, after ringing the bell. “My name’s David, I knew your son.”

If alarm bells haven’t started ringing yet, they soon will. After all, has there ever been a doorbell rung by a stranger looking to stay the night that hasn’t ended badly? The Guest plays on those genre conventions with a wink – along with any other conventions it can find too.

And so David inserts himself into the bereaved family’s life, befriending young loner Luke (Brendan Meyer) and taking the breath away from his sister, Anna (Maika Monroe). Even the suspicious mum and dad are won over by his charms and talk of how well he knew their son. But this is a film by You’re Next director Adam Wingard (and scripted by the film’s writer, Simon Barrett), so the usual plot points are nudged to dark extremes: when Anna swoons over David, she does so with his top off, his torso dripping with steam; when he meets her friends, he doesn’t hesitate to jump into bed; and when he teaches Luke to stand up for himself, he does so with a plank of a wood smacked across someone’s head.

Stevens delivers it all with a manic grin, veering wildly from photogenic charm to psychotic chills; the kind of man you could see playing James Bond. But for all the leading man’s charisma, the nastier he gets, the more generic The Guest becomes.

The knowing trash veers into conspiracy thrills, while the arch claustrophobia gives way to unrestrained silliness – a treat, given the 70s-style fun house final act, but a slight disappointment, following the tension of the opening half. Nonetheless, Steve Moore’s soundtrack keeps the pace up with its synth pulse adding to the Drive-esque retro sheen. The result may not enjoy a permanent stay in your memory, but it still offers a hugely entertaining one night stand.

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