Blink Twice is a slick and exciting directorial debut, but the plotting is often messy and tonally confused.
Directed and co-written by Zoë Kravitz, previously best known as an actress, the movie is immediately interesting to watch. Kravitz has a clear vision of the in-movie world and shows more than enough style to warrant further opportunity in the director’s chair.
This is not a case of an actor simply trying their hand behind the camera; it is clear Kravitz has real chops. But her work as a writer is less clear cut, as the plotting of this movie slowly loses steam as it stumbles towards an ending.
Blink Twice follows cocktail waitress Frida (Naomi Ackie) and her friend Jess (Alia Shawkat) as they are invited to spend some time on the private island of tech billionaire Slater King (Channing Tatum).
If the alarm bells are ringing in your head, you are absolutely right.
Without going into too much detail about the plot beats of the movie – which will work better with less context – King’s Island is a thinly veiled allegory for Epstein’s Island.
And while specific details of what is happening are doled out carefully throughout, there is never any doubt where this movie is going. You are just waiting for what the specific atrocities will be.
Kravitz creates an off-kilter atmosphere from the first shot that leaves the audience uncomfortable, even when all seems to be going swimmingly poolside with a couple of margaritas.
But as you might expect, things start to go awry as the story unfolds, before the full scope unravels in the last third. This is where Blink Twice leaves the rails, before finding its way to an ending that I thought was bizarre.
It should also be noted that there are some genuinely distressing scenes, which without being graphic remain horrifying to watch. Bold choices were made here and it is clear Kravitz was hoping to make a statement.
The ethics of those decisions will be viewer dependent, but certainly have the effect of making one think.
That alone is more than most movies can muster.
Rated 16 for scenes of Violence, Language, Horror and Sexual Violence.
3/5.
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