Catching the late bus into town, a young woman (Vero Maynez) finds herself stranded in suburban Chicago when the family she’s supposed to be staying with all abruptly disappear. Trudging to her cousin’s home, she is perturbed to find no answer at the door and the phone ringing out. Is anybody home?

Written and directed by Mickey Keating (Offseason, Carnage Park, Psychopaths), Invader is a lean and nasty version of the home invasion movie, embodied by producer and antagonist Joe Swanberg. Ironically, the film is at its most tense before its heroine ever gets indoors – expertly capturing the terror of being a woman walking home alone late at night. But it never really lets up, from loud beginning to frantic end. There are elements of The Collector and Hate Crime to its cruel and violent action, but what Invader best captures is a sense of escalating madness and anxiety that’s rare outside of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre itself.

If the colonialism allegory is clear enough, the way it leans into other(ing) tropes for a cheap thrill will leave a sour taste in the mouth for some, as will its chaotic, motion sickness-inducing final act. Running at a brisk 70 minutes, Invader burns hot and fast, staying just long enough to kick the doors in and trash the joint.

INVADER is in select US cinemas from February 21st