Them (also know as Ils) is a French film about a couple terrorized by strange people. This has been seen in Funny Games and The Strangers, but what sets this movie apart is that it does things right.
First, we do not see the attackers. For a long time, we don't see them at all, which makes you wonder if this isn't a movie about ghosts terrorizing a couple. When we finally do catch a glimpse, we only see their feet. This lets the viewer come up with his/her own idea of who the attackers are. It's been said so many times, because it's true - what you don't see is scarier than what you do. Funny Games and The Strangers lack a lot of suspense because you constantly see the attackers and know what they're doing. In Them, you don't see them, so you don't know if they're right outside the door, downstairs, or already in the room. You don't know what weapons they have, so you feel more tense, because they could be unarmed and easy to take down, or they could be packing some serious heat, and going head-on against them could result in immediate death.
Second, the characters act like real people. No stupid decisions that no person could make, even if they were scared to death. And no superhuman shit that tips in the odds in their favor by throwing rationale out the window. The man and woman act the way any person would, and that means they take some damage but aren't sitting sheep the entire time.
Finally, the movie is short, which I've found to be a blessing with most horror movies. Coming in at about an hour and fifteen minutes, Them accomplishes what it set out to do, spook the audience, without a bunch of useless scenes that explain that the woman has issues with her mother or that the couple is on the rocks or anything else that doesn't matter. The couple is being chased in their own home late at night; that is enough to make us sympathize with them and feel the terror they feel. Too many horror movies try to skim over the horror in favor of characterization (despite usually lacking the ability to proper characterize). Them says, "Fuck characterization! We're going to focus on making you sit on the edge of your seat." Good choice.
This movie won't be great for repeat viewings, but that could be said of at least 90% of horror all movies. The fact that it's good enough to watch once sets up above most of the crap that floods the genre. That said, it is worth showing to your friends, so I can understand buying it. Just make sure you have a lot of friends.
