Lazy Film Critic Movie Reviews
Don't Breathe
So I just saw Fede Alverez's latest horror film, Don't Breathe, a film that I've been looking forward to a lot in recent months due to its talented director and unique premise. Essentially, a group of teenagers break into a house looking to make a score, but start being hunted down by the blind homeowner. It sounded like unique morally ambiguous spin on a story that could've been pretty one note. And I have to say, Don't Breathe is yet another entry into 2016's surprisingly great lineup for horror films.
As you can probably guess from the premise, a lot of what Don't Breathe is hinging on for it to work is the actors performances. In horror films in general, actors have to sell genuine fear, but in Don't Breathe that challenge for the two leads is kicked up to 11, and to my surprise they both handled it really well. Jane Levy we've seen in horror before, she knows her way around the genre, but in Evil Dead she was playing a more antagonist-ish role instead of the main character, but the change doesn't show and she's just as fantastic. Dylan Minnette, a total newcomer to the horror genre shows a lot of talent, I can honestly say this is the best I've seen of him as an actor so-far. However, as you can probably guess, the real standout performance (dare I say an Oscar worthy one) is Stephen Lang as the movies villain. Not only is Lang an extremely menacing premise and manages to fully embody this character, but he convincingly mimics the mannerism of a blind man in a way that the illusion never once breaks.
And another big reason that the illusion of the film never breaks is the impeccable direction and editing done in this movie. Alvarez showed off with 2013's Evil Dead that he knows how to play around with both sound and visuals, and while between the two I personally prefer Evil Dead, this is certainly a more impressive film from a technical standpoint. The attention to detail in both the way sound is used and the film is framed is outstanding. Alvarez manages to create suspenseful, tense situations seamlessly and with just a few tricks of editing. It's probably the most impressive film editing-wise I've seen all year, and come Oscar time I hope it gets the recognition it deserves.
This film had the same writing team as 2013's Evil Dead as well, and it certainly shows. Writing for a horror film can be difficult, as in a lot of them there's usually a moment where smart characters could probably do something easier or smarter but are just suddenly stupid for the sake of making the plot work. This film doesn't have any of those moments, these characters are smart and do smart things but still end up in sticky situations, and it works towards the films benefit. It's way more compelling to watch characters make the clearly right choices but still get outsmarted by the villain, it helps to keep the audience on their toes. It sounds obvious now, but most horror movies like to have unreasonably stupid characters. And what this all amounts to, the direction, the acting, the editing, and the script, is one of the most consistently scary and intense movie experiences of the year.
Final Rating
While it's not my favorite horror movie of 2016, I think I'd place Don't Breathe somewhere between Lights Out and 10 Cloverfield Lane. It's a consistent and frightening moviegoing experience that keeps you on the edge of your seat and never fails to surprise the audience more and more. From a purely technical standpoint, this film is an achievement to behold. In todays horror climate, a lot of horror movies tend to get elevated onto pedestals simply for being good (Sinister, The Conjuring), but in this case Don't Breathe is actually a great horror movie.
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