Susan Granger’s review of “Don’t Breathe” (Sony)
An integral part of a critic’s job is to gear a movie to its intended audience. So – if you like horror genre – this is for you.
Opening with a gruesome tease, it quickly becomes a home-invasion thriller that pits a trio of teenage thieves against an unexpectedly resourceful victim: an aging Iraq War veteran, blinded in combat.
Carefully calculating just how much cash they can take to avoid a grand larceny rap if they’re caught, Alex (Dylan Minnette) uses his dad’s security-company connections so he and his friends can rob houses belonging to Detroit’s wealthy.
But his cohorts aren’t quite so careful. Wallowing in luxurious fantasies, Rocky (Jane Levy) tries on glamorous clothes, while her absurdly named boyfriend, Money (Daniel Zovatto), gleefully desecrates and destroys valuables.
Rocky discovers there’s a Blind Man (Stephen Lang) with a huge stash of currency hidden in his dilapidated house in an isolated Motor City neighborhood. It’s a settlement he received when his beloved daughter was hit and killed by a reckless driver who was subsequently acquitted.
Rocky figures that the loot will enable her and her vulnerable younger sister Diddy (Emma Bercovici) to flee to California – far from the trailer park and their abusive mother with her latest boy-friend.
Sedating the Blind Man’s guard dog isn’t difficult, but once they’re inside the house, they get more than they bargained for. Trapped in a menacing cat-and-mouse game when they discover the grim secret that the vengeful old man is hiding in the basement, the malevolent tension escalates exponentially.
Scripted by Rodo Sayagues and Uruguay-born director Fede Alvarez (2013 “Evil Dead” remake), its cleverly crafted misdirection and night-vision shocks are reminiscent of “Wait Until Dark” (1967) in which a blind woman (Audrey Hepburn) was threatened in her small apartment.
Cinematographer Pedro Luque and production designer Naaman Marshall should also reap credit for much of the claustrophobic suspense.
On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Don’t Breathe” is a scary 7. Inhale deeply, exhale slowly – and expect a sequel.
