Boy, this film is intense. Another twist on the home-invasion genre, this one having three unsuspecting burglars breaking into the home of a blind army vet. The setup is clever, in that the morality of all parties involved is ambiguous at best. A lot of the characters are awful people doing awful and sometimes stupid things so its hard to be sympathetic. The direction is stunning, each shot; be it wide drone affairs, intimate close-ups, or transitions showcasing dark corners and hidden shadows, adding volumes to each scene. There is little wasted fluff as this is a scalpel-lean, well-polished film without any excess indulgence and a masterclass in tension-building. There is not one unearned moment of tension, no silly jump scares, nothing but taught nerve-wracking intensity. The camera is wielded like a character in these events, each shot perfectly framed and lit for maximum tension. Sound like likewise wielded as a tension-building weapon, as every single noise the characters make is highlighted and accentuated, to better attune the viewer with the blind character's range of experience. i will admit not expecting quite a bit of the scenes in this film, but it all made sense and I never felt 'cheated' by a scene or explanation. My only complaints are that the cast looks like a bunch of baby-faced extras from a CW show and they're hard to root for.
Don't Breathe