David and Amy (Luke Wilson and Kate Beckinsale) are the leads of Vacancy. After returning from an unfamiliar area, they take a wrong turn and their car breaks down in the mountains. With no cell reception, they walk to a lonely motel where a sketchy Frank Whaley invites them to spend the night until the garage across the street opens in the morning. Mysterious phone calls and banging on their door starts to put the couple on edge. What really sets them off is finding videos and a VCR in their room that turn out to be snuff films made inside the very room they are in. From there out, it is a cat and mouse game with the killers who can seemingly enter their room at will.
I remember liking this more than I would have thought. It could have easily gone in a Strangers direction but the film keeps the protagonists on the move and trying to outsmart their captors. Luke Wilson does a decent job of playing terrified in his usual deadpan mode. And we all know Kate Beckinsale can kick some ass when required. The creepy setting and the thought that went into the set up of the motel paid off for me. Nimrod Antal would go on to make the decent Predators sequel. He did a fine job here.
What seems like a sleazy set up pays off in an above average thriller. Check it out.
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