Netflix’s Intrusion starts off with attractive mountain scenery as Meera (Freida Pinto), the main female lead, calmly jogs on an isolated path. At first glance, Meera has a good life; her thoughtful husband, Henry (Logan Marshall-Green), takes good care of her, and she recently moved into a luxurious, modern-styled mansion built by said-husband.
At the beginning of the film, Meera and Henry’s relationship appears unbelievably adorable—the two are couple goals. But after their “date night,” where they foolishly go without their cellphones to give each other their undivided attention, things get…well, messy. With a title like Intrusion, it’s no shock that bad guys break into Meera and Henry’s extravagant home.
Intrusion may be predictable, but that doesn’t necessarily make the film a lousy watch. The soundtrack, the acting, the secrets—all of these aspects glued my eyes to the screen. Despite the absurd amount of times I accurately called out what would happen in the film, I couldn’t keep my draw from dropping or thinking, “Will she do this? Tell me she will do this!” And she did—every single time.
Since the secrets can be easily guessed if you’ve ever watched another thriller, they aren’t that captivating. But if you hold onto the false belief that the twist is some grand, never-been-thought-before thing, you will be engrossed in the film, eagerly wanting Meera to put the clues together. However, anticipating a shocking reveal at the end will leave you disappointed, as the mystery isn’t all that compelling. With that being said, the middle of the film can be a swift, riveting ride, but the end is not memorable enough to cause the viewer to ponder the film long after the credits roll.
Not like you won’t be bored while watching; the intense music adds to the film’s intrigue. Soundtrack Radar lists six songs of the Intrusion playlist by six different artists: Little Brutes, Female Species, Billy the Kid, Leon Bridges, Caamp, and Dojo Cuts. Though Alex Heffes serves as the film’s composer. The soundtrack in a way mimics a heartbeat, or how a heartbeat would react in these high-thriller scenarios. Even the sound of something as mundane as a dog barking played alongside the fierce beat, is enough to make a viewer jump in their seat.
The camera angle amps up the heart-racing moments of Intrusion. From the camera turning sideways to focusing solely on the footprints both outside and within the home, the captured scenes lend to a successfully creepy atmosphere. The film isn’t all-too-scary, but it’s a psychological thriller, not a horror. The camera twists enough to make the heart pound, but not to have terror kicking its way in. For example, when the break-in happens, the horror could have gone full-in, but instead, there’s a time jump to maybe a week later where the intruder is out of sight.
In Intrusion, it’s easy to question Henry’s moral compass. Is he a good person who’s just slightly off (but means well), or is he a bad person? As the scenes progress, the viewer may doubt his trustworthiness, but by the end, all the pieces fall into place.
On the surface, Henry initially seems like a good guy. But from scene one, something about Henry didn’t sit right with me. He may initially appear affectionate, stepping into the role as the perfect husband, but who’s that perfect? Is he just the flawless hero or is there something amiss about him? Later, we see him being all great, fixing the shelves and putting the pictures back where they belong after the break-in left the living room a chaotic mess with furniture all knocked over. But is there a catch to Henry’s extreme kindness?
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The clothing designers did a perfect job flaring alarms in my brain with Henry’s too cleaned-up appearance. His hair is gelled back—gelled—like he’s trying too hard to look normal. Except he looks the furthest from normal, rocking some ‘50s hairstyle.
There’s room to analyze if other characters in Intrusion are mentally unstable due to their questionable actions.
Mental illness continues to present itself in Intrusion—it’s what makes Meera feel so real and such a likeable heroine. After the break-in, Meera seems to have PTSD from that night, seeing flashes of the intruder in her work office (but the bad guy’s not really there).
Meanwhile, Meera proves to be a strong female character. She uses her impressive detective and defense skills when she goes up against the true bad guy.
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Intrusion nicely ties up all loose ends. While watching I had numerous questions—for example, how do they afford a lavish mansion and Meera’s cancer treatment? Intrusion doesn’t leave any questions in the dark, no matter how minor.
The ending was a happy one, if “happy” can equate to ending the story with traumatized characters, but the film arguably should have extended a little further. Couldn’t Meera have interacted with more people, letting the viewer know that she’s currently in the process of recovering? Instead, after the conflict gets resolved and Meera makes one last decision, the credits scroll down the screen. Meera being in recovery may be implied, but even her talking to a therapist would have been nice, not to mention full circle because she’s a therapist herself.
If you want to watch a thriller that has unforeseeable twists and turns, Intrusion would not be what you’re looking for. But if you want to avoid a thriller that ends with unanswered subplots and don’t mind extreme predictability, Intrusion may satisfy your jump scare cravings.
Intrusion is now streaming on Netflix. Watch the full trailer here.
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