Director: Marcel Walz
Year: 2020
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Slasher
Plot:
After suffering a debilitating accident, a now-blind actress moves into a dark depression staying at her house and causes a friend and personal trainer to move to lift her spirits, but when she begins to suspect something is wrong she finds herself unaware of the psychotic killer stalking her in her home.
Review:
There was quite a lot to enjoy about this one. Most of that is centered around the likable premise which features quite an impressive setup. With the idea of the leads of the film being blind and determined to not let it affect them, there’s an equal mix of humor and pathos to be found in the setup. Using the support group to push each other up over their supposed limitations as well as crack jokes about heightened sense creates a wholesome and appealing setting for everything else around her, as the day-to-day struggles this also presents alongside the good that comes out of the meetings. From their friendship and later burgeoning relationship that emerges out of the situation that is quite enjoyable to watch play out, this build-up creates a great amount of sympathy for later on that’s all due to Sarah’s portrayal of Faye. This is a fantastic performance as the grief and sorrow over the situation is quite realistic and heartfelt based on the slight bits of knowledge gathered about her that helps to connect us together rather well. Given the fact that she’s blind and unaware of the danger around her for most of the film, this is a great trait and makes the film all the better for it.
On top of that, there’s so much to like here when this drops the dramatic elements and offers up the more usual genre elements. With the insert shots of the killer in his lair obsessing over the strange artifacts he keeps, there’s a rather creepy and sinister air to everything that’s only enhanced with the bizarre lighted decorations strewn all over which provides an eerie blue-ish purple glow. With an impressive stalking scene featuring the abducted victim taking place within this location, the suddenness of the masked killer appearing to stalk and torment the victim allows for some enjoyable atmospheric build-up to occur. When it shifts to the house and the events of the killer being there the whole time despite her being unaware of it due to her conduction, the situation is exponentially creepier and more suspenseful as the thought of the same fate befalling her as the other victims who are falling prey due to circumstance while she has no chance to know he’s there and watching everything. With a truly suspenseful and chilling series of events in the finale featuring some creepy visuals and action, this one manages quite a lot to hold it up overall.
There are some minor flaws with the film overall. One of the biggest factors is a decidedly personal issue in that for all the great build-up done about her relationship and struggle with her condition doesn’t leave this one filled with too many genre-friendly moments in the first half. The kills don’t start in earnest until around the halfway point of the film meaning that for some out there the measured pace won’t be that interesting or exciting. It’s far easier for fans of slow-burn genre fare who will be more appreciative of this tempo as a slasher film incorporating that setup isn’t too common and might result in some thinking it’s bland or dull. As well, there are also a few small issues in the finale where it takes far too much incredulity to believe it can be pulled off with all the foreshadowing about noticing the differences in the world around them due to their disability which is a missed point. However, none of these are too detrimental and there’s a lot to like here.
Overview: ****/5
A highly enjoyable and entertaining take on a slasher effort that’s artistically pleasing while it does spend a bit too much time getting to the good points, overall this one still manages quite a lot to like about it. Give it a look if you’re intrigued by this kind of setup in a slasher film, a fan of the creative crew or looking for a dramatic take on the subject matter, while only those who look for more traditional slasher efforts will find fault with the film.
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