Adam Wingard’s name has been the rising star over the last 12 months. Ever since his segment for 2012’s anthology collection ‘V/H/S’ and further success with both its sequel and standout masterpiece ‘Q is for Quack’ in ‘The ABC’s of Death’ we have waited for ‘You’re Next’, his home intruder horror created before any of his short films had entered this world.

‘You’re Next’ may show a resemblance to a growing genre of films (‘The Strangers’, ‘The Purge’) with the family at home rudely interrupted by some masochistic attackers but Wingard has a trick up his sleeve. Rather than true and add something new and grab the complexities of a cat-and-mouse ‘Inception’ styled thriller (we’re talking to you ‘The Purge’) this sticks to the basics and does its damn best at making a raucous OTT violent horror that has all of the blood and death to satisfy even Hannibal Lector.

Erin (Sharni Vinson) plays the hard as nails heroine better than anyone else on screen kicking ass from start to finish with intriguing tools of death created from string and bricks. Sometimes beyond belief but pulled off with sheer coolness it’s a shame the Davidson family aren’t bigger.

I confess it takes some time to kick in and a long last supper seems like the dullest intro conceived but from the moment Ti West’s (finally in front of the camera and certainly his best work since ‘The House of the Devil’) brief cameo is cut short the action doesn’t let up. One by one the family are picked off one by one until the shocking (to be fair if you’ve seen any recent mainstream horror you will see this coming) reveal of who is behind this senseless attack.

 

Some plot holes (why the neighbours? Why not just asked for a loan? How much training did Erin get in home security?) can be dismissed, in favour of the very graphic scenes of bloodshed. For surely the death of the year has to go to “Best use of a Blender since ‘Braindead”.

It’s worth noting that the final chapter has one of the greatest soundtracks paying homage to classic 80’s horror films with its synths and clangs that gave us fear back in a time where this would have certainly been a video nasty.

So the wait may not have been the most rewarding ever, but what lies behind ‘You’re Next’ is a well made thriller that has plenty of jump out of your seat moments and memorable death scenes to keep you begging you’re not next.