'The Strangers: Chapter 2' Review: Renny Harlin’s Horror Sequel Stumbles With Style Over Substance
- Shauna Bushe
- 1 hour ago
- 3 min read
By Shauna Bushe - October 5, 2025
Early May of 2024 Renny Harlin released the first chapter in his trilogy of The Strangers, a reboot that attempted to relaunch the terrifying home invasion franchise. Subsequently, it was reviewed as one of the worst horror films of that year, described as a hollow rehash of the original with meaningless direction and uninteresting atmosphere. Now in 2025, it follows the same displeasing fate, lacking the same signature violence as the 2008 version and leaving viewers scratching their heads even more. One can only hope that Chapter 3 surprises us, making all this disappointment worth it.
Picking Up Where Chapter One Left Off
Chapter One ended with Maya (Madeline Petsch) in the hospital, recovering from her encounter with the masked invaders. Her fiancé Ryan (Froy Gutierrez) wasn’t so lucky, having bled out before any help arrived. Chapter Two picks up immediately where the first one ended with Maya still in the hospital, facing interrogation from the shady policeman and awaiting a rescue from her sister Debbie (Rachel Shelton). But it’s not long before Scarecrow, Doll Face and Pin Up Girl learn of Maya’s survival and hunt her down. As a result, is one long, stretched out, unrelenting chase scene lasting the entire film. Only breaking to let Maya attend her wounds and introduce new characters, who are essentially lambs led to the slaughter.
Considering the harsh negative reactions towards the first film, the reality of Renny Harlin and his team shooting all 3 films back-to-back pretty much did them more harm than good. With all 3 films sharing the same stylistic, creative choices it leaves little hope that the audiences will feel any satisfaction with the finished project. Renny Harlin knows how to create atmosphere, how to frame a character looming menacingly in a well-lit hallway but what he fails to carry out is a convincing storyline. The inconsistencies of subplots and confusing flashbacks pull you right out of the suspense that is clearly full of potential but lacking the better execution.
Yet, however flawed and uneven Chapter Two presents itself, the 80’s horror homages sprinkled through-out are pretty cool. Like: being stalked through a seemingly abandoned hospital (Halloween II), scary boiler room attack (A Nightmare on Elm Street) and the axed bathroom door (The Shining), Harlin clearly loves his horror classics.
There are times when the home invasion elements can get lost, slipping in and out of slasher territory. That isn’t to say the extra bloodshed isn’t welcome but proves how erratic the films feel. Additionally, instead of developing a connection to the film’s protagonist, Chapter Two chooses to explore the actions of one of the killers, Pin Up Girl. In a sequence of irregular flashbacks, we unravel the truth of Tamara, witness the evolution of a psychopathic murderer and the consequences of a jealous playground love affair. Uh, okay? What's more is the bizarre choice of CGI, in the middle of the forest Maya is attacked by a gigantic Boar, released by The Strangers as an attempt to incapacitate her but really just feels out of place.
Madeline Petsch Shines as Maya
What saves these films from being entirely dismissible is Madeline Petsch who plays the protagonist Maya. Through very little dialogue she is able to carry herself reasonably well. Incredibly resourceful, great pair of lungs and a menacing death stare, she is the formidable opponent The Strangers never saw coming. Even if Maya never becomes more than a vessel of trauma, her on screen presence is compelling enough to sit through Chapter Three.
Final Verdict on The Strangers: Chapter 2
But two movies in and we’re no better than when we started. Even though The Strangers: Chapter 2 manages to spark life in some areas, it’s not enough to maintain an emotional investment. There’s more graphic imagery, brutal choreography, intense bloodshed and suspenseful chase scenes to appreciate, but the only thing that creates fear is the threat ‘to be continued…’.
'The Stangers: Chapter 2' is out now in cinemas.
Want more film reviews? Check out more content on our website Film Focus Online!
