Stream or skip: Ashley Madekwe's social-thriller 'The Strays' on Netflix
Ashley Madekwe's social thriller/slow-burn drama The Strays landed on Netflix on Wednesday (February 22). The film has been directed by Nathaniel Martello-White and co-stars Justin Salinger, Samuel Paul Small, Jorden Myrie, and Bukky Bakray. The Strays is a social commentary on class and race privileges, but unfortunately, it never really rises above its "clickbaity" tendencies and ends up as an underwhelming, strictly one-time watch.
'The Strays' follows life of mysterious woman
The Strays follows the shady life of Cheryl/Neve, a Black woman who abandons her kids at an early age to escape her lackluster life and her abusive husband. She moves to a different city, marries a White man, and starts a new life with two children. However, her dreaded past catches up to her as her abandoned kids (Dione and Carl) re-enter her life.
Film redolent of 'Get Out' and that's not great
The Strays is a little too inspired by Get Out (2017), a superior thriller that showcased what happens when the Blacks and the Whites are pitted against one another in adverse conditions. While reports suggest The Strays is inspired by true events, it's a little difficult to enjoy it after one has already seen Get Out—which ranks higher in the thrill and overall packaging.
You can predict events from miles away
For a thriller, The Strays is largely devoid of suspense. Sure, the makers try to enliven the film through predictable horror/thriller tropes, but they have no impact on the overall product, which is extremely predictable and somewhat bland from the get-go. All in all, The Strays milks the core concept dry, so much so that the next turn of events thrives on elementary guesswork.
Everything seems cosmetic, fake to core
Another factor that goes against The Strays and stops it from becoming a must-watch recommendation is the way the tension and restlessness are manufactured in it. It's too cosmetic, too superficial, and too phony. Once the core plot is set up, the film begins to move in circles, and while the actors give it their all, they can't save a film gone tragically amok.
Movie had potential in these places, but it fizzled out
It's not to say that The Strays is scrubbed off any potential. For one, its title speaks volumes about African-Americans' plight, it uses the Hansel and Gretel imagery to show how "evil" the mother is, and its commentary about White privilege hits the nail on its head. It also underlines how the color of the skin has the potential to disfigure one's life.
Fans of 'Get Out' can safely miss this social thriller
I would recommend checking out The Strays only if you haven't watched Get Out. Otherwise, it's difficult to root for a movie that is stripped of a structure and suffers when asked to be engaging. It may want to describe the Black community's anguish, but sans a story, that mission largely remains unaccomplished. The Strays is nothing you haven't already seen on Netflix before.
