A old-fashioned and eerie thriller that is bound to leave you breathless

Rating: 9/10 (1 September 2016)

Now this is what I'm talking about. "Don't Breathe" is a simple, but very energetic home-invasion horror thriller that has chills and thrills. Plus, no cheap jump scares found here, just pure horror done the good old-fashioned way. And it also provides a few twists that are so shocking, they will leave you speechless. This is Uruguayan director Fede Alvarez's follow-up to the ultra-gory, but stylish and thrilling "Evil Dead" remake. Here, he takes a more relaxed approach with less gore and more storytelling. Set in Detroit, the movie follows Rocky (Jane Levy), a young girl who is trying to get herself and her little sister out of here, along with her boyfriend Money (It Follows' Daniel Zovatto). Rocky's friend is Alex (Dylan Minnette from last year's "Goosebumps"), whose dad works at one of those security companies. Their plan to end all plans, of course, is to rob the house of a blind man who has a huge sum somewhere and they will be on their way. It turns out that this blind man known as "The Blind Man" (Stephen Lang) is a war veteran and is a lot more skilled than they think he is. He knows every corner, frame and room of this house and he is certainly not afraid to strike. But he also has a few things lurking in that house. Now, this is where I stop, because the rest I want you to see for yourself. The way how this movie was designed is through the old-fashioned techniques that most filmmakers haven't used in a while. Alvarez uses tracking shots, sound and a great deal of foreboding to keep us on our toes and to make our hairs stand on end. Credit must given to cinematographer Pedro Luque, production designer Naaman Marshall and three editors for knowing how to pull us in through style, substance and restraint. It also features one of the best scores I've heard since "Gone Girl" and that is the unsettling and eerie score courtesy of Roque Banos, who seem to have taken a few pages from the Reznor/Ross guidebook. I think one of the most memorable characters ever created in my opinion is "The Blind Man". Stephen Lang, who has played villains before, makes this character subtly effective and very terrifying. He doesn't say a lot (nor does he should), but with those piercing eyes, a magnetic presence and the way he walks with no mercy and no fear, Lang carries this challenging task on his shoulders and runs with it. There's no need to question his loyalties, because you can't tell if these characters are good or bad. Jane Levy, who worked with Alvarez on "Evil Dead" and gave such a fearless performance in that film is even more convincing this time. She and Dylan Minnette are great at conveying fears with their eyes and trying not to make any sounds while walking in the dark. I'm certainly not going to forget this movie. I haven't reacted to a film this stunning since David Fincher's "Panic Room". Both films do give a very claustrophobic feel of what's it like to be trapped in a house. But "Don't Breathe" gets the upper hand because someone knows how to take that fear and cranks it up to 11. You never know what you're going to expect and you don't know how it is going to turn out, but it takes a big dive and it's not afraid to go all out. Here's a very subtle response from me: It's bound to leave you breathless.