In 2013, we saw the
release of the remake of “Evil Dead.” Directed and co-written by Fede Alvarez
and starring Jane Levy, the remake managed to be a surprisingly faithful
reimagining that I loved a lot more than I was expecting. Sure, it might have
been due to Sam Raimi, Robert Tapert, and Bruce Campbell being attached as
producers of the flick, but it still managed to deliver a very effective horror
film, that I would definitely say rivals up there with the original. And with
the film’s success, it led to two very good things happening: the new Starz
series, “Ash Vs Evil Dead,” and Fede Alvarez working on a brand new film,
“Don’t Breathe.”
The film is about
three young delinquents: Rocky, Alex, and Money; who are common house robbers,
who dream of leaving their dead beat town for a better life in California. When
they come across a blind war veteran who has a big fortune with him, they
decide to make that their next target, but just because he’s blind, doesn’t
mean he’s harmless.
I have to say, for a
follow up to his version of “Evil Dead,” Fede Alvarez did not disappoint.
“Don’t Breathe” is very suspenseful thriller that constantly had me on the edge
of my seat more so than most of the horror films that I’ve seen this year. One
of the key things that it excels with is its use of sound. There isn’t a lot of
jump-scares in this movie, but with a character who relies purely on the
slightest hint of noise made, every creaking footstep, every slight rubbing of
the fingers, and every breath taken in this film is amplified to increase the
tension. Hell, I even found myself holding my breath. I also love the
claustrophobic atmosphere this film gives us, something that “10 Cloverfield
Lane” did great with too. The only difference between the way these two films handle
that atmosphere, is that this film never drops the tension, whereas “10
Cloverfield Lane” has a few more relaxed scenes. Do I think one is better than
the other? Not really, because they are both totally different scenarios, so it
just depends on what you’re in the mood for.
Jane Levy plays
Rocky, the main character we follow through the film, and it was really nice to
see her in a lead role again. While she is technically a crook, her motivations
and portrayal of the character make her very likable, as she only does what she
needs with the best intentions. I’m really hoping with the best with Jane Levy,
because she really is a very strong actress, even in the horror genre.
Hopefully she’ll get a chance to work on “Ash Vs. Evil Dead” soon. Dylan Minnette,
best known for his work in “Prisoners” and “Goosebumps,” plays Alex, and I was
really impressed with what he delivered. Being someone who can hack into
security systems, he shows himself to be very reliable to Rocky and Money. You
see that he does care for what happens to the two, and will do whatever he can
to make sure that they come out as unscathed as possible. Speaking of which,
Money is played by Daniel Zovatto, who played Greg in “It Follows,” and it was
really nice to see him in another great horror film. Unlike Alex, who is clean
and calculative, Money is more of the quick and dirty kind of guy in
comparison. Not that he isn’t careful, but he does take a riskier approach to
things.
Of course, as good as they are,
Stephen Lang steals the show as the blind man. Why? Well, if you watch the
trailer, you know exactly why. Lang is downright terrifying in this movie, with
his portrayal of the blind man. Like I said, with even the slightest noise made
being amplified, you always tense up, fearing that he will be coming around the
corner at any minute. And as this film goes on, his character gets even more
fucked up than you could predict. Trust me, when it got to that point, even I
exclaimed out loud “oh fuck!”
Now, do I have any complaints with
the film? Yeah. For one, if the film had just ended with the police arriving at
the house, then that would have been fine. However, it just kept going, and the
very last scene of this film felt very unnecessary, like it was the alternate
ending on the blu-ray. Also some people have pointed out that this has a lot of
similarity to David Fincher’s “Panic Room” and Wes Craven's "The People Under the Stairs." And…yeah, after watching it a
second time, some of those similarities became very obvious, especially with
the end credits. At least the film executed those similarities well. If this
film was like “Chappie” or “The Legend of Hercules (2014)” where they were both
rip-offs AND shit movies, then I’d have a problem, but it didn’t.
Overall, “Don’t Breathe” is a very
suspenseful and tightly made movie that really keeps you on the edge of your
seat. The tension, the atmosphere, the scenario, it’s all tightly made and
executed really damn well. It’s one of my favorite horror films of the year,
and it gets my recommendation.
Rating:
9/10
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