Blink Twice

Blink Twice is a psychological horror from first time director Zoe Kravitz, and takes a look at toxic masculinity in a tone and approach not too dissimilar to films such as Get Out.  It sees Naomi Acki play Frida, a nail stylist and cocktail waitress, who encounters tech billionaire Slater King (Channing Tatum) at a function, resulting in her and her friend Jess (Alia Shawkat) being invited to spend time with King and others on his private island.  On arrival they find their phones removed (for secrecy), and join the other guests in a holiday experience with fine dining, massages, relaxation, and drug infused partying, with gifts of clothes and perfumes to ensure they are always at their best.  However, Frida and Jess begin to feel uneasy about the activities going on, feeling that something isn’t right with the island, and so begins a spiralling journey of revelations as the secrets of King’s past indiscretions begin to come to light.

There’s a smart approach to the manner in which the film plays out.  From the opening moments showing us headlines referring to King having to apologise for past behaviours, before we move to a simple structure opening as Frida and Jess encounter the billionaire and find a rather charming persona.  However, the linear structure starts to break up once the partying starts on the island, with erratic jumps around in time in a disorientating fashion leading to some confusion as to events, with scattered dream-like moments interspersed suggesting that Frida has memory gaps of the nights of partying, as well as a curiously confusing encounter with a worker on the resort who calls her Red Rabbit.  Initially jarring, this muddled second act swiftly became essential as it put the audience in the same drug-addled confusion that the characters were in, and as the pair begin to remember moments, we also start to piece together the mystery of what is happening.  By the third act, things move back to a linear structure for reasons that are linked to key reveals in the story, as the final half hour descends into violent fury.

This is a sharp film with a fine balance of dark oppression to humour, which makes use of shooting techniques to really convey the contrasts between the summertime party atmosphere, before conveying similar moments in a more foreboding and sinister manner.  The primary casting of Ackie and Tatum works beautifully, with an attraction between the two established early on feeling genuine, before the cracks start to show and true intentions and betrayals come to light, making them perfect enemies.  Tatum gets to play sinister here and even just the simple act of him deciding where a chair should be positioned become a tension filled moment.   Around the pair there are a wealth of wonderful names, including Christian Slater who is joyous on screen as one of King’s friends, Vic, snapping away photos of the partying group throughout the course of events.  Geena Davis lends able support as King’s assistant Stacy, and Adria Arjona stands out amongst the remaining set of guests as Sarah, a fierce minded survivalist who starts to realise something is wrong, and pairs with Frida after Jess goes missing and everyone forgets she ever existed.

Whilst not entirely unpredictable, the film is off-kilter in approach enough that even if you think you know what is to come, you can never be entirely sure, and despite not being completely fresh and original, Blink Twice does establish Kravitz as a skilled filmmaker who gets the most out of her cast, making the film a welcome calling card for the director who I, for one, am certainly looking forward to following the career of going forward.