Blink Twice starts as a dream scenario – you stumble into a wealthy tech mogul who offers to whisk you away to his private island for a few days of indulgent living. But in Zoë Kravitz’s directorial debut, it’s not quite the perfect fantasy as the secrets lurking deep within the island threaten to swallow you whole.
When cocktail waitress Frida (Naomi Ackie) and her best friend Jess (Alia Shawkat) sneak into an exclusive gala and befriend reclusive billionaire Slater King (Channing Tatum), they walk into that exact once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Slater invites them to his island and, there, it’s a paradise of sunshine, booze, decadent meals and all kinds of psychedelic drugs. But as the days start to blur into each other, everything may not be as perfect as it seems.
It’s apparent very early on that there’s something darker going on here but Kravitz’s storytelling is incisive and patient; her script (co-penned by E.T Feigenbaum) unravels the mystery very carefully, slowly building on the reveals and the tension to the very horrifying reality of what’s actually happening. It draws heavily on its influences (a sort of amalgamation of Get Out and Glass Onion) and is punctuated by sharp editing and sound design that jolts and shocks the audience. It’s not scary per se but it’s just enough to remind them not to let their guard down until it reaches its boiling point in a violent final act.
There’s an impressive ensemble too, featuring Ackie and Tatum on terrific form – the latter is relishing a very creepy, against-type role here – and bolstering solid supporting work from Haley Joel Osment, Simon Rex, Christian Slater, Kyle Machlaclan, Liz Caribel and a scenery-chewing, scene-stealing Adriana Arjona. However, for a film that’s so thematically interesting (a scathing eat-the-rich commentary; the abuse of power; a takedown of the patriarchy), the script is devoid of any real characterisation. Everyone is cast well and delivers pulpy, malicious turns with gleeful conviction but they’re paper thin and the film lacks some venom in its bite as a result.
The whole thing is backed by an electrifying soundtrack and the sun-soaked cinematography cultivates a strong visual palette. Technically, it’s all very deftly done. Blink Twice is also quite funny – frequently and surprisingly so, despite the circumstances – but the film never rises above the (mostly competent) sum of its parts. The writing lacks depth and the overarching narrative feels derivative without adding much else to the genre playbook – only ever scratching at the surface of its very promising ideas and themes, where other films have been able to get deeper. It’s still a riot nonetheless, thanks to a very game cast and the stylish, snappy and savvy filmmaking on show from Zoë Kravitz: a gorgeous, thrilling yet hollow candy-coloured nightmare. Whatever she does next though, you won’t want to blink and miss it – that’s for sure.
Blink Twice is now playing.
Blink Twice
Summary
A sort of amalgamation of Get Out and Glass Onion, Blink Twice is a gorgeous, thrilling yet hollow candy-coloured nightmare.
