The beauty of The Strangers is that it doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel or tantalize viewers with gimmicks — it’s incredibly simple in both its storytelling and action. The audience sees very few glimpses into the characters’ lives with the exception of the first scene — after a friend’s wedding reception, Kristen rejects James’s proposal. The disappointed couple arrives at James’s secluded family summer home where they’re staying for the night. The mounting tension between the main characters is broken by a knock at the door. The front porch light won’t turn on, and an eerie figure stands in the darkness. “Is Tamara home?” the woman asks. They tell her she has the wrong house, then go back to their night, but it becomes apparent that they were never alone. For a movie of this subgenre, The Strangers doesn’t depict gratuitous violence. Most of the interaction from the intruders is seen only by the viewer as they skulk in the background watching their victims and waiting for them to make a break. What makes The Strangers most unsettling is the fact that Kristen and James were random targets. In the film’s opening credits, we hear the rumbling of a truck engine and a POV shot of the houses as it drives by — they could have picked anybody.

Available on MAX and Hulu.