iring on Hulu and Amazon Prime, Trespassers is the same as its ancestors. Following in the footsteps of other Hollywood horror and thriller movies, it is just another addition to the collection. Angela Trimbur takes up the role of Sarah while Janel Parrish, the star of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before and Pretty Little Liars, plays her long-time best friend Estelle. Victor, played by Jonathan Howard, is the outspoken boyfriend of Estelle; Zach Avery essays the role of Joseph, Sarah’s fiancé.

The minimalistic and chic modern interior of the house does little to induce the horror theme the movie is trying to portray but nonetheless is an accurate presentation of what horror in 2024 would look like. What starts out as a rented-out Airbnb for two couples as a relaxing retreat quickly turns sideways. The first red flag should have been the absent owner who happened to be a photographer.

Caught up in their own whirlwind, the bunch fails to notice intruders slowly making it into the house and setting out on a murderous spree. The second red flag shows up as a neighbour at the doorstep asking for a cell phone as her car has broken down the road. Inquired as to why her own phone is not useable she does not have a good excuse. Shimming right in to use the cell phone, she does not hold back and continues to roam around in the house as the second and third intruders break in.

With the couples’ relationships deteriorating, fights break out. Meanwhile, the intruders start settling in setting in the fear slowly but surely. With complete darkness enveloping the couples, the neighbour shows up claiming that it is just a power outage.

The dim lighting, the hollow hallways and the lifeless furniture in the seemingly posh, elite and what should have been a warm and welcoming home set the tone for the movie early. The plot starts falling apart rapidly with several incidents left with no explanation but that is becoming a common occurrence in movies.

The characters make the same naïve mistakes that all victims make every time in every horror movie. When it is too late for the four - they are already surrounded by machetes and masks - the plot turns into an average movie out there. The movie is very dry in substance with nothing eye-catching or extraordinary, given the vivid and vibrant posters and descriptions for the movie circulating online.

The movie has a very predictable plot and the acting does not do much to help its cause. It feels like the actors gave up midway and just played the roles out of necessity. The movie could have been better given the resources, the cast and the theme but failed to deliver. It wouldn’t be harsh to say that major platforms are failing to deliver quality content with the plots repeating the same themes, stories and global predicaments. This is taking away the pleasure of entertainment altogether.

The writer is an undergraduate student of psychology at FC College, Lahore