‘Something lurks in the dark of the woods…’
Old Strangers is a 2022 American mystery thriller about three friends trying to reconnect in a secluded mountain town after a long quarantine. While out for a hike, the trio stumbles upon something dark and terrible in the deep woods.
Written, directed by and co-starring Nick Gregorio. The movie also stars Ted Evans, Madeleine Humphries and Colton Eschief Mastro.
Plot:
Sarah, Michael, and Danny try to rekindle the spark of their youth only to be confronted with the harsh realities of their relationships. Just beyond their reunion, in the deep woods, there is something otherworldly growing and feeding on their pain…
Reviews [may contain spoilers]:
“Clearly influenced by a particular Fifties science fiction classic, director Gregorio brings the story right up to date albeit without the political commentary. Either way, it will delight fans of science fiction and horror whilst maybe even putting another conspiracy theory in there for people to laugh about.” Battle Royale with Cheese
“A likeable cast pulls us into a decently relatable scenario where we can empathize with the characters, their dynamic becoming more stressed as their situation worsens. Though brief, Old Strangers hits the nail on the head in delivering an engaging story with palpable tension and unease.” Bloody Disgusting
“The fact that it’s listed as the third film, stretching back over fifteen years, of writer, director and producer Nick Gregorio, just doubles down on disheartening. It’s not scary. It’s poorly-acted. There are no-budget-film continuity blunders. Why-oh-why was this picked up for release?” Movie Nation
“Only running just over an hour, Old Strangers doesn’t outstay its welcome, there’s no padding of the story – a story may I add that feels remarkably real despite the alien invasion subplot – and goes out on top, ending on a high. A downbeat high, but a high nonetheless.” Nerdly
” …it really succeeds in capturing the sentiments of the time and thus makes the rather far-fetched – and essentially (and welcomely) under-explained – science fiction situation feel very real. And thanks to a very relatable trio of leads giving strong performances, and a thriller savvy direction with a focus on creeping suspense, this has turned out to be one very fine piece of genre cinema.” Search My Trash
“If Gregorio had used all the time spent on padding to give us a bit more insight into the trio of characters this could have been good instead of just watchable. Because you can’t really be disturbed by strange behaviour unless you know the character well enough to recognize it, waiting to be told it takes away from the impact especially in a film with this short of a running time.” Voices from the Balcony
Release:
In North America, Old Strangers will be released on Digital by Gravitas Ventures on January 11th 2021.
Cast and characters:
Ted Evans … Michael Stalworth
Nick Gregorio … Officer Childs
Madeleine Humphries … Sarah Baxter
Colton Eschief Mastro … Danny Turner
Andy Riesmeyer … Midday Mike (voice)
Technical details:
1 hour 2 minutes
Trailer:
