Some Visitors

In horror, the home invasion story is nothing new. For that matter, the teen-babysitter-home-alone plot is not particularly fresh. It’s not that these stories shouldn’t be told anymore, but if you do, you need to find a new hook, and boy did I get hooked into Paul Hibbard’s short horror film, Some Visitors.

I pretty much just gave away the plot there. A young teen is alone on babysitting duty. The top story on the news is about a rash of home invasion robberies, and then there’s a knock at the door. It’s a stranger asking to use the phone to call for help because he was in an accident. The cautious teen says no because the guy is giving off a suspicious vibe, and as he walks away disappointed, the teen relents. First mistake!

You can pretty much predict what happens next as writer/director Hibbard masterfully plays the game of tension and release. Just as the stranger puts the fear of God into the teen, he releases the tension as a way to keep her (and us) off-balance until it’s time to strike… and surprise! Predictable? Guess again.

“The top story on the news is a rash of home invasion robberies and then there’s a knock at the door.”

Some Visitors is one of the best-executed home invasion thrillers I’ve seen in a long time. I mentioned that Hibbard had mastered the art of tension and release, and he’s relentless — like a never-ending rollercoaster. Yes, there’s a surprise reveal… I mean TWO! As icing on the cake, the filmmaker’s use of violence and gore will please any horror fan. I’m still wincing, thinking about what my eyes cannot unsee.

Someone needs to give Hibbard a shot at a feature film. After seeing Some Visitors, it’s the next logical step. In the meantime, horror fans, if you’re not regularly attending your local film festival’s midnight screening, search it out. I’m certain Some Visitors will come out of nowhere and gross you out.

Some Visitors has been selected for the 2022 Panic Fest. For more information, visit the Some Visitors Facebook page.