"Don't Breathe" generates horror from a reversal of roles

"Don't Breathe" (2016, USA), the new film by "Evil Dead" re-creator Fede Alvarez, is one little tricky and subversive animal. How are we supposed to hate a blind man (in the film, played by Stephen Lang) who is just protecting his house from a trio of young burglars (Jane Levy, Dylan Minnette and Daniel Zovatto)? How is it that the helpless victim has all of a sudden become a murderous villain? And the supposed-to-be criminals are the ones who are gaining our sympathy? In this another specimen of the home invasion sub-genre, the tables are actually turned, somewhat recalling "Shut In", released earlier this year. 

This is where the charm and intrigue of the film lie. What was initially a home invasion set-up for the three burglars becomes an escape plan for them, as they have to make sure that they get out of the veritable house of horrors alive, something that the blind owner is hellbent on not allowing to happen. This might not work if the so-called invaders were portrayed as outright nutheads, with nothing that could somewhat endear them to the viewers (just like those in "Shut In"). But as we can see early on and in the most economical way possible (why not, the film runs for only about 88 minutes), Alvarez' and Rodo Sayagues' screenplay provides little enough backstories to the main characters to show that they still have redeeming values in them (well, with the exception of one;the obligatory a-hole, perhaps). 

Rocky (Levy) is a product of a broken home and dreams of a better life for herself and her little sister, which can happen if they get out of the rut that is Michigan and into the dreamland that is California. Alex (Minnette), meanwhile, serves as the moral yardstick of the trio, the so-called "conscience". He was initially reluctant to join his two friends into ransacking the blind man's house (they don't do cash, as he says), but because he can't really leave Rocky by herself he eventually joins in the plan. Thus, when they finally get inside the house of their latest target, we somewhat root for them to have their hands on the cash (which the blind man won from a settlement over the death of his daughter from a car-hitting accident). Their initial foray into the house is a stroke of genius, done in an unbroken take as the camera moves from one character to the other while searching for the loot. Until the blind man "senses" their burglary. 

After the first act of violence has transpired, it is when the tables start to get turned as the two remaining thieves must muster all their will and skill to be able to make their way out of the blind man's house (which now has been locked up) - alive. At 88 minutes, it makes sense for the director to have the film lean and mean - and so he does. Most of the action practically takes place inside the house, with all its rooms, corners, basement, ventilation and what-not. Much like Jeremy Saulnier's own escape chiller "Green Room", every step that a character takes puts a stake on his/her life. One wrong move and he/she will surely pay dearly for that. But another stroke of genius that Alvarez employs in ratcheting up tension and suspense is his use of silence (could the centerpiece robbery in Jules Dassin's "Rififi" be a probable influence?). Displaying a masterful use of editing and sound design, what we can mostly hear during those tense cat-and-mouse moments are the characters' heavy breathing and the minute sound of some inanimate objects. Especially in that sequence where the blind man turns off the lights, placing poor Rocky and Alex in the same vantage point as their captor, making their way through the darkness with only their sense of touch. 

Another remarkable thing is that the director doesn't have to rely on over-the-top violence for shock effect (unlike his previous gore-fest that is "Evil Dead"). The nervous anticipation comes from whether or not the hapless captives will get through those locked doors and windows and from thinking about which corner or side of the house will the blind man burst forth. The whole matter then becomes something like a waiting-and-expecting game. Now, going back to the tricky question of how are we supposed to hate someone who is just protecting his property from a bunch of intruders, something that occurs in the film's mid-section might somehow erase whatever apprehensions we have about the matter. Of course, no spoilers here, folks. That being said, "Don't Breathe" is certainly one of the well-made thrillers that I've seen this year, something whose dread and horror spring from a sudden reversal of roles and the consequent helplessness of those involved. 

(Jane Levy and Dylan Minnette must make their way out of their supposed "victim's" house of horrors in Fede Alvarez' "Don't Breathe")