Breaking into someone’s house is always a bad idea, but when your target is an unknown vicious psychopath, things are bound to become even more terrifying. "Don’t Breathe" is brutal, intense and scary while also managing to stay fast-paced and simplistic.
The film follows three thieves as they attempt to rob what seems to be an easy target: an unnamed elderly blind man who they suspect to be hiding a large fortune in his small, dilapidated house. But the thieves soon find out that the man has violently honed his other senses and traps them in his house after learning their motives.
By far, the film’s greatest strength is its feeling of claustrophobia that waxes and wanes as the blind man and the thieves go back and forth, each using their strengths and handicaps to gain the upper hand.
The suspense builds every moment the thieves are there and as the audience starts to learn the layout of the small dark house, it becomes fun guessing where the blind man could be as he ominously marches around the darkness he has adapted to.
However, eventually the audience realizes the gravity of the scary situation for both the man as well as the thieves. It is due to this that "Don’t Breathe" adds layers to its narrative by painting both parties as characters that deserve the viewer’s sympathy in some way.
Whether it’s the thieves that see this man’s money as a way out of a horrible life or the blind man’s need to defend himself from those that are robbing him, the viewer does not always know who to root for during the film’s run.
A film truly succeeds when it makes us question what we see as right and wrong while also identifying with both the protagonist as well as the antagonist; we recognize their actions as a clash of realistic human nature as opposed to simply good versus evil.
"Don't Breathe" is a very scary movie with a plot whose ingenuity and intelligence slowly reveals itself as we witness a situation that is terrifying in its humanity, all the while entertaining in its execution. It is easy to get the feeling that you are breathing down the thieves' necks as they desperately try to escape, but the real suspense comes from the lifeless eyes of the blind man that you can feel glaring at you even in the darkness of the theater.
Turner: 3 Stars Watkins: 4 Stars Overall: 3 1/2 Stars
Writers Note: "Don’t Breathe" will keep you on your toes throughout the entire movie. Use the bathroom beforehand.
