DON'T LET HIM IN

Paige and Calvin are an English couple who decide to spend a relaxing weekend in a house in the middle of the British countryside. They are joined by Calvin's sister, Mandy, a woman obsessed with frequenting men as rich as they are odious, like Tristan, an arrogant character who only loves his work and money and decides to join her for this vacation. Despite being warned about the presence in the forest of a dangerous serial killer who, after brutally killing his victims, dismembers them to then hang their bodies on the trees, they still decide not to give up their trip. During the first night of the four's stay in the house, a seriously injured man knocks on their door; from this moment on, the protagonists begin to suspect that the killer might be one of them, until the discovery of the intriguing truth. Directed by Kelly Smith in 2011, "The House in the Woods – Don't Let Him In" is nothing more than one of the numerous thriller-horror films in which a group of people go to a forest far from any form of civilization to find a bit of relaxation and tranquility from the frenetic daily life, only to be massacred by the serial killer of the moment. Inside, we find all the typical clichés of this type of film, which often become a bit too banal and seen hundreds of times. The setting in the British countryside is of undeniable impact and particularly suitable for the plot, while the protagonists have not been characterized in a sufficiently detailed manner, except for Tristan, who manages to seem despicable and particularly odious as soon as he utters any line of the script; we are faced with the exaggeration of the figure of a selfish career man who puts wealth and his own interests first, oozing cynicism and petty materialism from every pore. Although the plot of the film is quite boring for more than half of the movie, we can notice a good number of interesting ideas inside, and above all, an unexpected twist regarding the continuation of the story. For being a thriller, "The House in the Woods" contains a good dose of tension that keeps the viewer's attention alive, arousing a decent curiosity that keeps us glued to the screen for its entire duration; unavoidable is the main characteristic of many characters that populate horror cinema, that is, their incredible stupidity that leads them to commit senseless actions that lead them into situations of obvious danger. In the 80 minutes of the film's duration, we find violence in full swing, accompanied by liters of blood and moments filled with pathos, although the production has really saved too much on the special effects that turn out to be quite poor and retro; this is accentuated by the colors of the settings, especially regarding the outdoor scenes characterized by pastel colors almost faded that give that 1980s flavor that, all in all, does not spoil. This "The House in the Woods – Don't Let Him In" is therefore a film without infamy and without praise that adds to other dozens of films that share the plot. Although there are several interesting ideas inside, overall the work is quite bland and of interest barely sufficient.