"Don't Breathe" Review

OP-ROB RATING: ALL-STAR

“Don’t Breathe” is a horror film directed by Fede Alvarez about three young thieves, specializing in house robberies in the Detroit area.  In an opening scene the trio breaks into a nice residential home to steal electronics and jewelry and each burglar is quickly introduced.  Rocky (Jane Levy), a slender girl with blonde hair, is focused on making enough money to flee her abusive mother in order to start a new life in California. Money (Daniel Zovatto) is a reckless loudmouth and a wannabe gangster, who displays little respect for professionalism during the robbery. Finally there is Alex (Dylan Minnette), who reluctantly steals information from his father’s security business in order to rob the houses.  Alex is seemingly responsible and appears to be robbing the houses mostly to win over Rocky, who has placed him in the “friend-zone”, opting for the more rambunctious Money.

After the robbery yields underwhelming returns, Money seeks out a job involving an old man (Stephen Lang) that is rumored to be sitting on a large cash sum in his run-down, two-story suburban house outside of Detroit.  The old man came into the money after a girl from a wealthy family killed his only daughter in a motor accident that resulted in a six-figure settlement.  Money proposes the robbery to Rocky and Alex, and after some deliberation, they decide to take on the challenge as “one last job”.  A successful robbery would mean Rocky could achieve her dream of moving to California. During the recon mission to the old man’s ghostly neighborhood, the group discovers the old man is blind, further strengthening their confidence in the job.  Late that night, Money, Rocky and Alex approach the house and manage to break in through an upstairs window.  A series of twists and turns ensue as the group discovers the man, the house, and the situation are far beyond their expectations.

“Don’t Breathe” thrives under excellent direction from Alvarez. A very distinctive film technique gives “Don’t Breathe” an edge with the pop-outs as with many scenes the camera moves through an entire room, giving the viewer a full view of the situation, before finally settling in on a character.  This heightened awareness of space and location gives the audience a sense of placement within the movie. The vast majority of the film takes place inside the Blind Man’s house, and feels like a prolonged cat and mouse hunt for survival, reminiscent of the final sequence in the classic horror film “The Silence of the Lambs”. 

Perhaps the greatest compliment that can be given “Don’t Breathe” is that it is just plain smart.  The plot is clean-cut, and Alvarez doesn’t mess around with extra scenes that don’t add up to the story.  An example of this focused direction is how objects are emphasized early in the story and become relevant later on.  When Rocky initially breaks into the house, a piece of broken glass sticks to her boot, and is dislodged in the middle of the upstairs hallway.  When the Blind Man awakens and searches for the burglars’ point of entry, he stumbles upon the piece of glass, which leads him into the bathroom where he subsequently boards up the broken window with a piece of plywood.  In the film there are several objects that share a delayed importance, some more vital than others:  a hammer, a cell phone, an alarm trigger, a pair of shoes, a gun.  Another intelligent aspect of “Don’t Breathe” is the judicious use of sound.  The title may imply this, but there are multiple scenes that involve such silence that a character’s breath or any small movement sounds booming.

Further strengthening “Don’t Breathe” is an overarching narrative about human nature.  At many junctures each of the burglars are presented with a very stark choice, go after the money or walk away.  In the beginning that choice carries little consequence, but as the story progresses so does the gravity of the decision.  Time and time again the burglars choose to pursue the money, even at junctures when that could mean their lives.  The exploration of these basic human desires is also reflected in the films’ villain.  The Blind Man, as we find out in a disturbing revelation, is interested in a basic human entity that money can’t buy.  “Don’t Breathe” lacks any kind of superstitious element, employing only plausible events, and is much more unsettling as a result.

There are a few slip-ups in “Don’t Breathe”, including the addition of a few unnecessary scenes following the climax of the film.  However, on the whole it is a very smart, very scary, and ultimately satisfying horror film.  Along with David Robert Mitchell’s 2014 film “It Follows”, Detroit is quickly becoming somewhat of a modern horror mecca, the derelict suburban houses ready-made for eerie events.  Coming off a disastrous summer for movies, “Don’t Breathe” is a welcome sigh of relief for moviegoers and horror fans alike.

"Suicide Squad" Review

OP-ROB RATING: BUST

 “Suicide Squad” is a DC Comics film directed by David Ayer and starring an ensemble cast headlined by Will Smith, Jared Leto, Margot Robbie, and Viola Davis. In the wake of Superman’s demise, a ruthless Intelligence Operative named Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) proposes an idea to assemble a team of villains to combat the next inevitable disaster.  The strategy is similar to combatting cancer; her team of destructive villains is the radiation treatment.  Despite obvious concerns from government higher-ups, Waller gets the go ahead for her “suicide squad” when an evil witch named “Enchantress” (Cara Delevingne) escapes captivity and begins destroying Midway City.

Waller handpicks several individuals including Floyd Lawton aka Deadshot (Will Smith) a skilled sniper and hit man, Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) a psychopathic killer, Diablo (Jay Hernandez) a Mexican gangster with powerful pyrotechnic abilities and Killer Croc (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) a cannibalistic man-crocodile. To contain the volatile team Waller employs Colonel Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman), a cocky special forces leader with extensive field experience.  After a head-spinning number of introductory scenes, the squad is sent into Midway City to neutralize the Enchantress.

A prominent subplot in “Suicide Squad” involves the Joker, portrayed by Jared Leto.  As Harley Quinn’s boyfriend, the Joker is central to her backstory and introduction.  When the squad arrives in Midway City, the Joker is there to try and break Harley out of the group and away from captivity.  Compared to portrayals of the character by Jack Nicholson and Heath Ledger in other movies, Leto's is disappointing.  Perhaps the underwhelming performance is inevitable, given the legendary status of the formerly mentioned actors.  More of an erratic mob boss/gangster than genuine psychopath, the Joker in “Suicide Squad” mostly struts around in an over-stylized costume and mumbles formulaic lines.  Having said that, the Joker is an entirely tangential character in the movie, so it is hard to judge Leto’s performance with certainty.

The most puzzling and ultimately damning problem with "Suicide Squad" is that it doesn't deliver on its central promise: that these characters are villains. Villains, if you didn’t already know, are supposed to be bad.  In reality, not one of the seven members of the squad is actually an evil individual. Deadshot is a very reasonable hit man and a genuinely caring father.  There are several scenes, which are the finest in the movie, in which Deadshot spends time with his daughter.  Killer Croc would probably be a regular guy if not for his horrific mutation. Even Harley is just one bad boyfriend away from being a model citizen.  In a strange dream sequence Harley envisions her ideal life as a domesticated mother and housewife with the Joker as a clean looking guy in a suit.[1]  Of the entire squad Diablo is probably the most evil given his past as a gang lord, but even he has a conscious so powerful that he refuses to use his powers for the first two thirds of the movie. 

The main selling point (“Worst. Heroes. Ever.”) of the movie is so false that the whole thing feels like a big gyp.  In one scene, the squad puts the mission on hold and visits a deserted bar in downtown Midway. While sitting around and having drinks, these supposed "super-villains" confess to each other and share deeply personal stories.  Flag joins the sob fest and mopes about his girlfriend problems. At the end of the pity party, the squad decides they will do the right thing and save the city together.  As it turns out the only truly wicked character aside from Enchantress is Amanda Waller.  Deadshot directly points this out after she murders several employees and he mutters to Flag, "yeah, and I'm the bad guy".

 “Suicide Squad” is a stark reminder that Marvel sets the gold standard for the genre. A few months ago I went and saw “Captain America: Civil War”.  At the time, I felt it was pretty average and had felt the same way about preceding “Captain America” and “Avenger” films as well as “X-Men: Days of Future Past”.  At a certain point the superhero formula gets old.  However, Marvel films are always well written, and at the very worst feel lukewarm.  DC Comics has been playing catch-up with the Marvel machine, and “Suicide Squad” is yet another ramshackle production that wastes its actors’ talents and audience’s time.  With a slew of DC Comics films set to release over the next few years, one has to wonder if life is too short to waste on another one not directed by a guy named Nolan.

[1] RIP Paul Allen. Cameo of the year

"The Fits" Review

OP-ROB RATING: LEGEND

 “The Fits”, a 2016 independent film directed by Anna Rose Holmer is about an elementary school girl named Toni (Royalty Hightower) living in a Cincinnati housing project.  She is slender, sports two tightly woven braids that bounce behind her head, and has the look of someone wise beyond her years. Aside from the hairdo, Toni could easily be mistaken for a boy.  She follows in the footsteps of Jermaine (Da’Sean Minor), her older brother, who is an amateur boxer.  In the local community center, Toni boxes with the guys, does sit-ups with the guys, and runs stairs with the guys.  Older males surround her in the boxing environment.  However Toni ventures across the community center to spy on the girls dance group, “The Lionesses”.  The group performs in a competitive hip-hop circuit. The practices that Toni frequently observes sometime involve a one-on-one “dance-off” that is in tune with the intensive nature of boxing.  Fascinated and with the blessing of Jermaine, Toni decides to try out for the all-female group. 

The theme of  “The Fits” is centered around gender roles, and what effect “choosing” a certain gender has on an individual.  For Toni, she unknowingly “chooses” to be a girl when she joins the Lionesses.  For example, she pierces her ears, paints her nails, and makes new female friends.  While all of these things aren’t necessarily bad, they alienate Toni from her brother, and from the boys she used to hang out with.  At a certain point in the film, Toni no longer fits in with her former friends. 

An overarching dynamic in the film involves a series of seizure-like attacks on various members of the Lionesses.  One day at practice one of the older girls loses control of her body and begins convulsing.  The violent shaking is preceded by a brief trance like state.  The event shocks all of the girls, and they suspend practice.  Although quite frightening, the “fit” doesn’t harm the girl, and she returns to normal as if nothing occurred. Over a period of time each girl succumbs to the fits, one by one.  Although the community center blames the drinking water, none of the boys are taken with the fits.  The meaning of the attacks is up for interpretation, but it is undeniably intertwined with gender.  The girls are affected while the boys are not.  As the film reaches its climax we wonder if young Toni, like the rest of the girls, will fall victim to the strange attack.

“The Fits” is full of interesting comparisons regarding gender. One such comparison is between boxing and dancing.  With the exception of Toni, who does both, the sports are restricted to either boys or girls.  The boxing is brutal, yet precise and calculated.  The Lionesses’ style of dancing is also very aggressive, but in a much wilder and reckless sense. In one of the dance routines there is a punch integrated with the rest of the moves.  On one of Toni’s first days as a Lioness, her authentic punch looks out of place with the rest of the routine.  Like a sound-byte of classical music being spliced into a DMX song.  These stark comparisons add layers to a seemingly basic story. 

Most importantly “The Fits” is bolstered by superb direction from Holmer and a riveting performance from Royalty Hightower.  Each scene is filmed with the kind purpose that is rarely displayed on the screen in this day and age.  For example, when Toni first spies on the Lionesses she does so from behind a door, looking through a narrow rectangular window.  The shot emphasizes her separation not only from the dancers, but also from the female gender role.  As the film runs its course and Toni “becomes a girl”, she looks at her former training partners in the boxing gym from an identical vantage point.  These tiny details are interspersed throughout “The Fits”, and add further intrigue to the story. 

Perhaps the seminal moment in “The Fits” occurs about halfway through the movie, when Toni stands on small arched bridge over a busy highway.  In a long take, she starts dancing and punching.  The two don’t mix, and it looks awkward.  But she continues with intensity, alone and unbothered.  By the end of her little workout she is smiling and laughing, completely content and full of confidence.  In reality, true individualism is independent of gender.  For a brief period, Toni embodies this kind of total freedom.  She can have the best of both worlds.  It is only when she commits to one over the other, or perhaps is inevitably taken by one that she loses the equilibrium embodied in the bridge scene.  “The Fits” runs for only 72 minutes, but packs the punch of a three-hour epic.  A film so unique in its execution and so universal in its meaning, “The Fits” is the best movie of this summer so far.