Review – Don’t Breathe

Don’t Breathe should really be called Don’t Fuck with Stephen Lang.  This movie is an hour and a half of Lang kicking ass and taking names, as he plays a blind war veteran, known only as Blind Man, defending his house from three hooligans (Jane Levy, Dylan Minnette, Daniel Zavatto) who break in trying to steal a large amount of money.

The first half of the movie is incredibly intense.  The kids think they have it easy, as the person they are robbing is blind.  But what happens during the robbery will shock you and have you on the edge of your seat.  We learn how relentless the Blind Man is and what he is capable of doing.  It also becomes evident that the kids are in way over their heads and you actually don’t know if they are going to make it out.

The filmmaking in the film is really well done.  The movie reminded me of an 80’s murder thriller, with it’s gritty style and violence.  Director Fede Alvarez also does a lot of cool tricks with sound, heightening it at certain spots so we can hear it like the Blind Man would.  And the pitch-black scene in the basement is horrifying and reminiscent of the nigh-vision goggle scene from Silence of the Lambs (1991).  This is probably the one scene in the movie where I didn’t breathe.

The second half of the movie is when the film gets real wild.  About 45 minutes into the film, the movie felt like it was going to be really redundant and repetitive.  But, what Don’t Breathe does so well is keep the twists and turns coming.  Whether its the Blind Man’s savage dog coming out of nowhere, or the disgusting, yet brilliant twist that had everyone in the theater gasping.  You can never predict where Don’t Breathe is going, which is surprising for horror movies today.

One thing the movie doesn’t do well is originality in characters and backstories.  These hooligans are horror cliche 101.  We have the girl who wants a better life for herself and her daughter, her thug boyfriend who is a complete hot-head, and the nice friend who has a conscience.  The actors do their best with what they are given, but nobody is great and nobody is terrible.  Stephen Lang, on the other hand, is spectacular.  This guy is as ruthless as he is smart and one of the more unique horror characters around.  He really rides the line between sympathizing with his situation and wanting him to stop.  I loved this performance.

Don’t Breathe isn’t the scarefest I ideally wanted, but it is a nerve-shattering thriller that will keep you on your toes until the very end.  The twists and turns keep coming, the filmmaking is solid, Stephen Lang is awesome, and the intensity never lets up, giving us one hell of a horror experience.

MY RATING – 3/4

Did you see Don’t Breath?  What did you think?  Comment below or hit me up on Twitter @kevflix and don’t forget to LIKE Kevflix on Facebook!