Editorials
[Set Visit Report] How John Carpenter Inspired the Set of ‘The Strangers: Prey at Night’
Writer/director Bryan Bertino made quite the impression with feature debut, The Strangers, in 2008. Inspired by the Manson family Tate murders and a series of break-ins during his own childhood, Bertino’s feature saw its leads terrorized by three masked killers over the course of an evening. The film became a surprise hit, grossing $82.4 million at the box office worldwide, and left fans clamoring for a sequel. Finally, that long wait for a follow up is nearly at an end; the lethal masked trio is back to terrorize a new set of victims with 47 Meters Down director Johannes Roberts at the helm.
While the 2008 movie was praised for its atmosphere and tension, the remote childhood summer home in which the film was set contributed a great deal to what made The Strangers so special. The warm, everyday nature of the well-lived in home juxtaposed with the creepy, remote location made the house an uncredited character among an already minimal cast. So, it’s no surprise that followup film looks to recapture that same feeling with a unique setting of its own.
In June of 2017, I was fortunate enough to visit the set of The Strangers: Prey at Night, nestled in the dense woods of northern Kentucky, and tour a small portion of the 56-acre plot of land dedicated to recreating a summer lakeside mobile home community. Speaking with the cast and crew, I learned a lot about what we can expect from the sequel, and I’m happy to report that it looks as though it’s going to be a very thrilling continuation of the beloved modern horror classic.
“For the story, we wanted to go with this so that it doesn’t feel dated when you look at it in five years. The first Strangers film I thought did it really well; I look at it now and the lack of technology doesn’t date it. It doesn’t necessarily say ‘2008,’” production designer Freddy Waff (Bone Tomahawk, Burying the Ex) explains on his approach to designing a timeless set that features 22 retro mobile homes and 8 RVs, all strategically placed to avoid giving a sense of location or direction.
Over the years, though, mobile home communities have built up an unsavory reputation, which is the opposite of the almost retro, vacation aesthetic that Waff created, adding, “They built mobile home parks in the ‘50s as sort of getaway places for people with money, like out in Palm Springs. There’s a couple of really big mobile home parks on the way out to Palm Springs, which were sort of pushed as vacation getaways. I did a lot of research on styles of trailers and brands of trailers and this is where we landed because this seemed to be the best version for what we were doing here.”
Having done extensive research on mobile homes, mobile home parks, and the aesthetic of the original film, Waff’s extensive research didn’t end there. He revealed an impressive catalog of classic horror that he watched with director Johannes Roberts when trying to hone in on what made a horror film endure the test of time, namely the films of John Carpenter. “Have you seen Christine lately? Man, it’s great,” Waff exclaimed as he dubbed the film an underappreciated classic, particularly for its impressive practical effects when it came to the titular car’s destruction. There’s no better reassurance that this sequel is in the right hands than a crew that knows and loves the genre as much as the fans; that are fans themselves.
As we walked down a desolate street lined with mobile homes, Waff gave us a peek inside two of the mobile homes that will feature key scenes in the film. Stepping into both felt like stepping into a time capsule, each one decorated in great vintage detail, right down to the retro wallpaper. Each mobile home brought on to the set were manufactured between 1970- 1986 to keep with the style Waff selected, and though Waff had to start from scratch to recreate the empty interiors, the homes reflect that dated era almost completely, save for a few details that places the film in a modern setting. There are also a good number of visual throwbacks to the original film, including a vinyl turntable located in what was dubbed the “hero’s trailer.” Though Waff warns it won’t be utilized in quite the same way as it was in The Strangers.
The scale of the mobile home park recreated in the dense Kentucky woods is impressive, and Freddy Waff’s intelligent production design makes such a large space still feel claustrophobic. With the film set after summer, most of these mobile homes have emptied out as the inhabitants have returned to their lives, making for several interesting places for both the victims and their masked pursuers to hide. It’s clear that Waff and Roberts have taken great care to retain the essence of what made the original film special, while widening the scope at the same time. The playground for the masked killers to play on has grown bigger and more interesting, and that’s very exciting.
Click here for the next part of my set visit, which includes details on the scene being filmed during my visit, and an interview with actress Bailee Madison about her character.
The masked maniacs return on March 9, 2018.
Editorials
‘Leprechaun Returns’ – The Charm of the Franchise’s Legacy Sequel
The erratic Leprechaun franchise is not known for sticking with a single concept for too long. The namesake (originally played by Warwick Davis) has gone to L.A., Las Vegas, space, and the ‘hood (not once but twice). And after an eleven-year holiday since the Davis era ended, the character received a drastic makeover in a now-unmentionable reboot. The critical failure of said film would have implied it was time to pack away the green top hat and shillelagh, and say goodbye to the nefarious imp. Instead, the Leprechaun series tried its luck again.
The general consensus for the Leprechaun films was never positive, and the darker yet blander Leprechaun: Origins certainly did not sway opinions. Just because the 2014 installment took itself seriously did not mean viewers would. After all, creator Mark Jones conceived a gruesome horror-comedy back in the early nineties, and that format is what was expected of any future ventures. So as horror legacy sequels (“legacyquels”) became more common in the 2010s, Leprechaun Returns followed suit while also going back to what made the ‘93 film work. This eighth entry echoed Halloween (2018) by ignoring all the previous sequels as well as being a direct continuation of the original. Even ardent fans can surely understand the decision to wipe the slate clean, so to speak.
Leprechaun Returns “continued the [franchise’s] trend of not being consistent by deciding to be consistent.” The retconning of Steven Kostanski and Suzanne Keilly’s film was met with little to no pushback from the fandom, who had already become accustomed to seeing something new and different with every chapter. Only now the “new and different” was familiar. With the severe route of Origins a mere speck in the rearview mirror, director Kotanski implemented a “back to basics” approach that garnered better reception than Zach Lipovsky’s own undertaking. The one-two punch of preposterous humor and grisly horror was in full force again.
With Warwick Davis sitting this film out — his own choice — there was the foremost challenge of finding his replacement. Returns found Davis’ successor in Linden Porco, who admirably filled those blood-stained, buckled shoes. And what would a legacy sequel be without a returning character? Jennifer Aniston obviously did not reprise her final girl role of Tory Redding. So, the film did the next best thing and fetched another of Lubdan’s past victims: Ozzie, the likable oaf played by Mark Holton. Returns also created an extension of Tory’s character by giving her a teenage daughter, Lila (Taylor Spreitler).
It has been twenty-five years since the events of the ‘93 film. The incident is unknown to all but its survivors. Interested in her late mother’s history there in Devil’s Lake, North Dakota, Lila transferred to the local university and pledged a sorority — really the only one on campus — whose few members now reside in Tory Redding’s old home. The farmhouse-turned-sorority-house is still a work in progress; Lila’s fellow Alpha Epsilon sisters were in the midst of renovating the place when a ghost of the past found its way into the present.
The Psycho Goreman and The Void director’s penchant for visceral special effects is noted early on as the Leprechaun tears not only into the modern age, but also through poor Ozzie’s abdomen. The portal from 1993 to 2018 is soaked with blood and guts as the Leprechaun forces his way into the story. Davis’ iconic depiction of the wee antagonist is missed, however, Linden Porco is not simply keeping the seat warm in case his predecessor ever resumes the part. His enthusiastic performance is accentuated by a rotten-looking mug that adds to his innate menace.
The obligatory fodder is mostly young this time around. Apart from one luckless postman and Ozzie — the premature passing of the latter character removed the chance of caring about anyone in the film — the Leprechaun’s potential prey are all college aged. Lila is this story’s token trauma kid with caregiver baggage; her mother thought “monsters were always trying to get her.” Lila’s habit of mentioning Tory’s mental health problem does not make a good first impression with the resident mean girl and apparent alcoholic of the sorority, Meredith (Emily Reid). Then there are the nicer but no less cursorily written of the Alpha Epsilon gals: eco-conscious and ex-obsessive Katie (Pepi Sonuga), and uptight overachiever Rose (Sai Bennett). Rounding out the main cast are a pair of destined-to-die bros (Oliver Llewellyn Jenkins, Ben McGregor). Lila and her peers range from disposable to plain irritating, so rooting for any one of them is next to impossible. Even so, their overstated personalities make their inevitable fates more satisfying.
Where Returns excels is its death sequences. Unlike Jones’ film, this one is not afraid of killing off members of the main cast. Lila, admittedly, wears too much plot armor, yet with her mother’s spirit looming over her and the whole story — comedian Heather McDonald put her bang-on Aniston impersonation to good use as well as provided a surprisingly emotional moment in the film — her immunity can be overlooked. Still, the other characters’ brutal demises make up for Lila’s imperviousness. The Leprechaun’s killer set-pieces also happen to demonstrate the time period, seeing as he uses solar panels and a drone in several supporting characters’ executions. A premortem selfie and the antagonist’s snarky mention of global warming additionally add to this film’s particular timestamp.
Critics were quick to say Leprechaun Returns did not break new ground. Sure, there is no one jetting off to space, or the wacky notion of Lubdan becoming a record producer. This reset, however, is still quite charming and entertaining despite its lack of risk-taking. And with yet another reboot in the works, who knows where the most wicked Leprechaun ever to exist will end up next.
Horror contemplates in great detail how young people handle inordinate situations and all of life’s unexpected challenges. While the genre forces characters of every age to face their fears, it is especially interested in how youths might fare in life-or-death scenarios.
The column Young Blood is dedicated to horror stories for and about teenagers, as well as other young folks on the brink of terror.
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