The Netflix film The Strays was dropped on the streamer this weekend and it really was a mixed bag. Or at least, it felt like a film of two halves.

According to IMDB, “Neve (Ashley Madekwe), who leads an idyllic life in the suburbs with her loving family, and works a fulfilling job at a private school. But when she begins to notice a strange man and woman appear unexpectedly at odd moments, she starts to doubt her sanity. Of course, she turns to her family and friends for assistance, but Neve is helpless when they hesitate to believe her.”

Without going into spoiler area and revealing what happens in the switch, the first half of the film where the IMBD synopsis is featured, is the weaker section of the film. I do not feel as if the film really played up the insanity aspect. It felt uneven and a little dull. Then, there was some hints that there was something mysterious going down. It touched upon some racial and Privilege bits that is never quite developed to the proper amount.

When the answer comes at about the halfway point, this movie picks up big time and the third act is very tense and tough to watch. In fact, there was a feeling in the pit of my stomach at the end of the film.

Ashley Madekwe is definitely the standout of the film. She expresses a ton with her face and has to go through a ton of emotions. Unfortunately, the character is so inconsistent that it hurts the overall flow of the movie. The second half though was much tighter and worked so much better.

This is better than the typical Netflix film, but it seemed like it tried to be all different kinds of movies but never committing to one.

3 stars