The Strays Review: You Can't Outrun the Past!

Tae
Feb 25, 2023
3 min read

Netflix released its newest original film and it’s definitely one to tune into and watch. The Strays is a British psychological horror film which follows Neve who lives in an idyllic suburban neighborhood with her family. When two mysterious strangers begin appearing at odd moments, secrets come to light as she questions her sanity and what’s real, and if the people she sees are seen only by her.

The film opens with the main character Neve (Ashley Madekwe) who lives in a condominium apartment and is in a frantic state, panicking and later fleeing. Flash forward to years later, Neve is living in a quaint, suburban neighborhood with her husband Ian (Justin Salinger) and two teenage children, Mary (Maria Almeida) and Sebastian (Samuel Small). She lives a happily, privileged life although conforms to certain standards to blend in with her predominantly white community due to being a light-skinned biracial woman.

Odd occurrences start to slowly begin when she spots a random man, questioning if it was just her imagination. While driving she also notices a drawing of two black stick figures on the driver side mirror. Neve is the headmistress at a private school where Mary and Sebastian attend as students, and while walking in the hallway she notices the man again, who is a janitor cleaning the floors and converses with Sebastian. As she tries to get a grip on reality and assure herself she’s not going crazy, she continues to see the man and then also a young Black woman.

She has an encounter with the young man in the bathroom at school, who ends up confronting her and questioning her about someone named Dione. She flees in a panic unaware of what he’s talking about. The unknown strangers, Carl and Dione (Jorden Myrie, Bukky Bakray), who are also Black but of a darker complexion, crash Neve’s upscale gala party, standing out and unable to blend in with the other guests. Catching Neve's attention she’s hysterical causing a scene, yelling at them as secrets begin to unravel. Once the film transitions to Carl and Dione's point of view five days prior, the dots connect together with all roads leading back to Neve.

The Strays is a well done psychological horror film that touches on the fine lines of abandonment, race, generational trauma, and social issues. I noticed numerous times whenever Neve wore a wig she tended to scratch or pick under it, as if she was uncomfortable and not feeling like her true self - and yes wigs can be itchy at times. The wigs are an interesting representation of a mask for her to hide under conforming to the society she’s living in which is predominantly white. Neve works strongly to uphold her image and do anything to fit in so her white peers do not see her as “urban” and accept her overlooking her biracial background.

The movie poster was also fun to study reminiscent to a Get Out reference. In the poster, a tear is trickling from Neve's eyes as if the person she once was is fighting to break out (The Sunken Place), while the person she displays to the world on the outside to blend in is who she now identifies with on a daily basis. There’s a scene when their friends make comments about urban communities and Black people, and she avoids chiming in.

Revenge is a best dish served cold in this film leading to a jaw-dropping ending that I found laughable yet bold. Nathaniel Martello-White does not disappoint with this movie as his directorial debut taking a page from the book of other horror geniuses. He toys with mind-bending techniques following Neve's character leaving the viewer to question if she is sane or really losing her mind? If you enjoy films like Get Out, Funny Games, The Strangers, or Us, add this to your lineup for movie night!