DON'T BREATHE

Well, that's one way to show that people with handicaps can be quite capable: Don't Breathe is a suspense movie where the presumed-helpless man turns out to be as dangerous and twisted as just about any horror killer.

In Detroit, Michigan, a trio of young people make their living by robbing homes.  Rocky (Jane Levy) wants to make enough money for her, her daughter, and her boyfriend Money (Daniel Zovatto) to move to California.  Alex (Dylan Minnette) plans the robberies by getting the alarm codes for homes from his security-working father; he's also cautious about what they steal (to avoid potentially longer jail times) and has a crush on Rocky.  And Money fences the stolen goods, which doesn't pay as much as he'd like.

Money gets a seemingly perfect tip: Rob the Blind Man (Stephen Lang).  He's a former Gulf War vet who got a six-figure settlement when his daughter was killed.  The robbers hope some or all of his money is kept in his house.  The house is almost the only occupied home in the neighborhood, which means no police patrols.  And since he's blind, they can walk around the house with impunity.

Naturally, the plan goes south pretty quickly.  While things start off well -- they drug the Blind Man's rottweiler and set off a chloroform bomb in his room -- the Blind Man quickly disarms one of the crooks (getting a gun) and barricading the robbers inside the home.  He's a hulking, well-trained soldier who knows the layout of the house perfectly and seems to hear every squeak and movement the robbers make.  And he has several surprises in his home...

Don't Breathe is a solid horror movie.  While there are times where the Blind Man sometimes seems as indestructible as Jason or Michael Meyers (and seems to pop up places almost at will), there's a pervasive feeling of claustrophobia as the robbers quickly find an "easy" score has them trapped with a killer.  There are several surprises and gross moments and very little character development (mostly Jane Levy screaming or trying not to scream), but there is plenty of tension and numerous scares (especially when the lights go out and everyone's blind -- but the Blind Man knows the layout and his victims don't).  Don't Breathe isn't the start of a horror franchise, but is does have plenty of scares on its own.

Overall grade: B
Reviewed by James Lynch