The Strangers: Prey At Night is the follow-up to the 2008 thriller The Strangers. Parents Mike (Martin Henderson) and Cindy (Christina Hendricks) are packing the car for a trip. However, this isn’t going to be a fun family vacation. Rebellious teenager Kinsey (Bailee Madison) has gotten into trouble one too many times, and is now being shipped off to boarding school. Why couldn’t Kinsey be more like her older brother Luke (Lewis Pullman), the pride and joy of the family?!

It’s a long trip, and the family stops off at a trailer park owned by their aunt and uncle. It is the end of the vacation season, and the park is pretty much vacant. The family is unaware that a trio of ruthless masked killers have already brutally murdered their aunt and uncle, and are now just lying in wait, preparing to do the same to them. It isn’t long before the the terror begins as the deadly trio make their presence known. A strange young blonde woman knocks on the door of the family’s trailer, asking for Tamera. She walks away after being informed that there is no one there by that name. However, after this happens repeatedly, Cindy starts to get concerned. The family splits up and heads off into other parts of the trailer park, but soon discover the grisly murder of their relatives, and encounter their stalkers—the knife-wielding Dollface and Pin-Up Girl, and the Man in the Mask, with a burlap sack over his face and dragging a large ax by his side. The family is now in a desperate struggle to stay alive, trying to both hide from and fend off these strangers bent on killing them.

The format of the film is very similar to the original movie. The trio of killers ride into town in their beat up truck, and head to a secluded vacation home, where they systematically stalk and kill unsuspecting strangers. They make their presence known with a creepy knock on the door, and leave blood red messages for their prey written on windows and mirrors. In the original film, the killers would constantly play records while taunting and killing their victims. This time around, the trio loves its 80’s music, and they crank up the volume on the truck stereo or trailer home radio before going in for the kill.

I found The Strangers: Prey At Night to be even more terrifying than the original film. It had me on (and leaping off) the edge of my seat several times with unexpected surprises and twists. At the same time, it also seems to have more fun than the original movie. This sequel fully embraces some of the classic horror movie cliches and plays with the viewer’s expectations. I also liked that this time around, the family seems to have more of a fight in them, and aren’t going to just sit back and let these strangers kill them. While I think the final showdown does get a little bit too ridiculous and over the top, I still fully enjoyed this film. It took me on a rollercoaster of scares and laughs, and even turned me into one of those people who yells at the characters to not go in there, or to turn around.

Universal’s Blu-ray release provides a solid presentation. Much of the film takes place in darkness, but the picture remains clean and detailed throughout the film, and really brings out the misty, creepiness of the setting. I found no evidence of black crush. The audio track provides clear dialogue, and really amps up the scare factor with the rev of the trio’s truck, the sound of the Man in the Mask’s ax scraping across the ground, or the blaring 80’s music as the trio ascends on a would-be-victim. The release only includes about 11 minutes of bonus features, including an alternate ending, a music video and three promotional featurettes featuring the cast/director. The disc contains both unrated and theatrical cuts of the film, but both are exactly the same length, and I’m not sure what exactly is different between them. The Blu-ray disc comes packed in a standard HD keepcase along with a cardboard slipcover. Inside is the digital copy redemption instructions, which redeems for an HD copy of the theatrical cut of the film.

What’s Included:

Film: (1:25:37, both theatrical & unrated versions)

Blu-ray:

• 1080p / Widescreen 2.39:1
• Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, English Descriptive Video Service (Theatrical Version only)
• Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish

DVD:

• 480p / Anamorphic Widescreen 2.39:1
• Audio: English 5.1
• Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish

Digital (see NBCUcodes.com for redemption deadline):

• Digital Copy
  HD digital copy of the theatrical version of the film, redeemable via Movies Anywhere.

Extras:
All bonus features are included on both discs.

• Alternate Ending (1:51)
  Similar to the existing ending, just extended by 20-30 seconds, leaving things less ambiguous, and more creepy.
• “Prep for Night” Music Video – Director’s Cut (2:29)
  Creepy music video shot from the point of view of the three strangers as they prepare to head out on their killing spree. Set to a version of “I Think We’re Alone Now” by Let Us Prey.
• A Look Inside The Strangers: Prey at Night (1:50)
  Promotional featurette that mixes clips from the film with interviews with stars Martin Henderson (“Mike”) and Christina Hendricks (“Cindy”), and director Johannes Roberts talking about the premise of the movie.
• Family Fights Back (2:02)
  Anither promotional featurette that mixes clips from the film with interviews with stars Martin Henderson, Bailee Madison (“Kinsey”), Christina Hendricks, and Lewis Pullman (“Luke”), and director Johannes Roberts talking about the premise of the movie.
• The Music of The Strangers: Prey at Night (2:46)
  In this promotional featurette, director Johannes Roberts and star Bailee Madison talk about the 80s music used in the film, and how the music provides a unique counter-balance to the horror on screen.

Final Thoughts:

The Strangers: Prey at Night is one of those rare films where the sequel is even better than the original. The creators have taken the characters and concepts of the original and have found a way to make a sequel that is not only scarier, but also contains some fun moments to help ease the tension. The Blu-ray presentation is solid, but is a little lacking on bonus material. Despite the lack of extras, I still highly recommend this release based on the film itself, which should satisfy anyone looking for a fun new thriller to provide some jumps and scares.