Film Review: Don’t Blink (2014) – Review 2

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SYNOPSIS:

A group of friends head to an out of the way resort for a weekend of fun and relaxation. When they get there no one is around and it isn’t long before members of the group start to literally disappear. Will anyone survive and figure out what is going on or all of them destined to vanish into thin air?

REVIEW:

I really enjoyed Don’t Blink and thought that it was one of the best movies I’ve seen this year. It’s original as well as interesting and just an all around great movie in general. It is one that will keep you on your toes and keep you guessing (as well as make you think) until the very end and I had a blast watching it. It reminded me a little of something that Stephen King would do and I enjoyed it immensely for a number of reasons.

I didn’t really know what to expect going into it as I wasn’t exactly sure what it was going to be about. I was initially under the impression that it was going to be a slasher flick about someone going around knocking off members of the group of friends one-by-one but that wasn’t the case. Instead there is a mysterious force taking people out by just making them disappear out of thin air. One minute they’re there but if someone takes their eyes off of them they just vanish, never to be seen again (hence the title of the movie). What’s causing the mysterious disappearances? Is it aliens? Terrorists? A supernatural force? God himself? I’m not saying.

One of the things that I liked most about the movie was the premise. Though it reminded me a little of the Dominique Swain flick Dead Mary to an extent during the beginning (due to the fact that everyone in town has just disappeared) I still thought that it was pretty original and quite different from a lot of other films that I’ve seen lately. I thought that it was well-written and there is very little down time as there is always something going on to hold your attention. It isn’t an all out horror flick and is more of a suspense/thriller but gets the job done and is effectively creepy.

Another huge strength of the film is the cast. It is full of realistic and likable characters and you actually care about them and want them to survive their predicament. Brian Austin Green (who has come a long way since playing an annoying, whiney little prick on Beverly Hills 90210 back in the day) does a kick ass job as Jack, the main character and I found myself rooting for him on a number of occasions and wanting him to make it out of the situation he finds himself in alive. Even though she really doesn’t see a lot of screen time (despite the fact that she is top billed) Mena Suvari also does a great job as Tracy and I wish that she had gotten to stick around longer as I really dug her character. Without a doubt though, my favorite character was played by the always awesome Zach Ward (who goes a little nuts at one point due to everything that is taking place around him). There wasn’t a single character that I didn’t like and I think that everyone did an excellent job of bringing them to life.

I also liked the tone of movie as well as it successfully conveys a feeling of utter helplessness that the characters are feeling. We have a group of people stuck in a horrible situation that none of them really understand and deep down most of them know that there is just no hope for escape. It is a pretty scary situation to be in because you know that you could just disappear at any given second without warning and there isn’t a damn thing that you can do about it to stop it from happening. I don’t know about the rest of you but it doesn’t sound like something I would want to experience for myself.

I feel like I have to say something about the ending. I’m sure that there will be some viewers out there who don’t like it as it leaves a ton of unanswered questions but I personally dug it myself. I thought that it was brilliant and liked that it leaves things open for a number of different interpretations. I have my own ideas on the cause of the bizarre events that take place in the movie and enjoyed the fact that everything wasn’t spelled out for me in the end. I don’t want to give anything away but let’s just say that if you are they type of person who likes things explained to you at length and everything tied up in a neat little bow then you are going to be disappointed in the end.

I thought that Don’t Blink was an excellent movie and I think that a lot of people who check it out will agree. It has a lot going for it and there is nothing negative I can say about it. If you’re looking for an awesome movie that is a little different from most then I recommend that you give this one a shot because it is a winner.