Review: Don't Breathe

Many people gawked at the idea of a remake to The Evil Dead, Sam Raimi's influential no-budget horror classic seemed too out-there and too lightening-in-a-bottle to work as a remake. But in the hands of first-time filmmaker Fede Alvarez, 2013's Evil Dead proved itself a worthy successor to the franchise by being a gloriously violent, shock value horror that served to excite and disgust it's audience in equal measures. However those same praises were used to criticise the film so in response, Alvarez sophomore effort was to be an original piece, focusing more on the tension than the gore and terrify the audience rather than sicken them.

Don't Breath is the result of that response. And it's a hell of a follow-up.

Set in the slums of Detroit (so really, anywhere in Detroit) the film finds three 20 something, Rocky, her boyfriend Money and best friend Alex, all quietly robbing rich-folk, using a system to not go over the legal amount for Grand Larceny and Alex's dad's job as a security installer to bypass the alarm systems. With Rocky and Money planning on leaving for California with Rocky's little sister Diddy soon they decide on one last big heist that'll set them for leaving, their choice of target is a blind, elderly Army vet who recently lost his daughter to vehicular manslaughter, the teenage driver who killed her was from a rich family who paid off The Blind Man in exchange for avoiding court. Figuring that The Blind Man would have the money in his home, the three of them wait until the dead of night and break-in.

Getting in is the easy part, where it gets difficult is when The Blind Man wakes up, after overpowering Money and (spoiler alert but it's in the trailers so I don't feel too bad about letting it slip) killing him, he attempts to get rid of the body believing Money to be the only intruder. Of course he soon realises that there are more people in the house and so, using the darkness and the familiar layout to his advantage, he sets off on a hunt.

I won't go any further because while this initially starts as a Home Invasion Gone Wrong film, it's actually a lot deeper than that and as soon as you realise the twist to The Blind Man's character the film takes on a whole new angle of moral ambiguity and even shifting loyalties. It's not a game-changer but it's certainly the best subvert of the genre we've had in years and helps set the film apart from its contemporaries. At a lean 88 minutes there isn't a huge deal of story but the execution is damn near perfect to pull off what it has to offer.

The cast was fairly limited to just the three main leads, Daniel Zovatto does a good job with his limited role as Money, proving himself to be a dick but a dick with principles. The focus on the small cast kept the film from needing to go outside of the house, the premise didn't afford any side characters so putting the lead trip front and centre kept them in the spotlight for the full duration.

Strange as it might seem to be rooting for a pair of small-time crooks, the way Alvarez and co write the duo lends itself well to making them both feel genuine. Levy's Rocky is from a troubled background, an abandoned father and a neglectful mother has her looking for any escape option for her and her sister. Stealing might not be glamorous but it's the quickest way she can get out of Dodge. There is an intelligence to Rocky that she might not even realise she has, she's the first to catch on to The Blind Man's heightened hearing being able to catch them breathing, she manages to keep her cool even when faced with a loaded weapon and the few questionable choices she does make call back to her harsh home-life and the situations she faced, her biggest flaws being greed when it comes to getting the money for her own freedom and empathy from not wanting to leave others behind. Levy's ability to make Rocky out to be this smart, resourceful but still flawed young woman is why she's able to lead a film like this and proves to be a great foil for The Blind Man.

Dylan Minnette as Alex gives the film it's voice of reason, it's clear that he holds a torch for Rocky and that most likely is why he's even helping her to begin with, but his shy nature holds him back from admitting anything, though Money still gives him shit about it. Where Rocky's background is an emotional wreck, Alex seems to have a fine upbringing, it makes him the most normal out of the group but also allows him to think more clearly as opposed to Rocky's on-the-fly though process. Minnette does a really good job with the character and makes him easy to root for as an ally to Rocky and a way to ground her in reality.

The real standout though is Stephen Lang as The Blind Man, this is a classic genre performance in the making and Lang kills it. He creates this almost mythical quality to the character, the way he's able to appear as if from nowhere, his superhuman senses, it's almost unreal but it adds to the quality of him being a villain. And make no mistake he is absolutely a villain, I won't spoil how but the brutality and sheer viciousness that he uses make him one of the genre's best creations of the decade. Lang is just phenomenal in the role and does an incredible job at building layers to the character and why he is the way he is, the reveal is easily one of the most uncomfortable scenes of the year. It's the closest we've gotten to a modern day Terminator and is all the better for the comparison.

As previously mentioned the film is directed by Fede Alvarez of Evil Dead fame and indeed, the film is the furthest thing from Evil Dead while still remaining a horror film. The film starts off slow but builds and builds and builds until the intensity is racked up to 11 and Alvarez is refusing to take prisoners. This rivals Green Room for the most intense ride of the year, it is incredible how easily Alvarez is able to squeeze every last drop of fear out of his audience with the simplest of elements, primarily through sound with every pin-drop forcing the viewers to tense up, waiting to see if The Blind Man has caught on to them yet. And yes, the film lives up to its name where evil breathing can get you killed.

One brilliant stand-out moment comes 2/3rds through the film where The Blind Man forces a blackout, giving Alvarez a chance to put him on home-turf, it's a fantastic sequence filled with silent pursuits, inches-from-disaster fumbles and enough close-shaves to make a barber tremble. Even that is just one standout scene in a film which doesn't waste a second, Alvarez more than proves himself with his flick and shows that Evil Dead was not a one-off fluke and that he has the ability to craft this tight, tense thriller, throwing back to old-school horrors while still offering something new to unnerve the audience.

Though judging by one particularly gross-out moment, he hasn't totally left that shock value behind him.

2016 is already a solid year for horror movies and Don't Breath is another winner to add to the pile, it's simple premise allows it expand into some truly fucked up and unexpected places, the main trio provide great work with Lang's classic-in-the-making performance as The Blind Man giving one of the best villain roles for many years and Alvarez's taut, tension filled direction keeping the audience on the edge for the full run-time. It's a must-see.

8.5/10