Jan 20, 2018
Today’s movie is... <sigh>... “The Open House” (2018), written and directed by Matt Angel and Suzanne Coote. The film follows Logan Wallace (Dylan Minnette) and his mother, Naomi (Piercey Dalton), who decide to move into Naomi’s sister’s mountain home after losing Logan’s father. The only catch is that the home has a weekly open house on Sundays for prospective buyers, during which they need to vacate.
I’m not really sure where to start with this film. The premise is pretty good, as far as home invasion films go. There are two main conflicts in the movie: the strained relationship between Logan and Naomi and the natural tension created by a home invasion. The former dominates the first half of the film while the latter creeps in as the film progresses.
The best part of the film is the relationship between Naomi and Logan. Dylan Minnette brings enough star power after “13 Reasons Why” to make up for some bad dialogue, and Piercey Dalton plays a strong maternal figure that would have played better knowing more about her relationship with Logan’s father. I almost wish there had been more development in the beginning for the entire family to invest me more in the characters.
Meanwhile, the entire second half is given away after Naomi and Logan return after the first open house, when Logan comments on open houses in general. The tension then has trouble building, as the unknown invader frustratingly repeats the same harassing behavior, and stretches it over a few days. By the time the film begins its rush to the climax, I feel like I already know what to expect, and aside from some cringe-worthy eye-related horror, I felt mostly bored.
“The Open House” (2018) stumbles at the start, struggles towards the climax, and will end up leaving most viewers disappointed. Poor pacing and bad dialogue challenge decent performances, and the film brings nothing new to either the horror genre, or the home invasion sub-genre. Most horror fans will find the film passable, perhaps even enjoyable in some ways. However, if you value your time, there are about 100 other home invasion films worth watching.
Rotten Tomatoes: NR
Metacritic: NR
One Movie Punch: 2.6/10
“The Open House” is rated TV-MA and is streaming exclusively on Netflix.