Zoë Kravitz’s first feature behind the camera, Blink Twice, is an ethically loaded, tautly constructed thriller with a lot to say. It fits in nicely with a current crop of similarly minded efforts like Don’t Worry Darling, Midsommar, and even this week’s Strange Darling in its examination of ways that society forces women to conform to the whims of men, but the most ready point of comparison is also one of the most thoughtful horror films ever made. Blink Twice is a chilling examination that does for women in privileged male circles what Get Out did for being black in privileged white circles.
Cocktail waitress Frida (Naomi Ackie) has had a long term celebrity crush on tech billionaire Slater King (Channing Tatum), a recently cancelled and disgraced figurehead who had to publicly apologize for allegations of predatory behaviour. Frida sees her chance to get close to King at a gala function for his charitable foundation. Frida and King hit it off, and soon she and her roommate, Jess (Alia Shawkat), are on board a private plane heading for the businessman’s secret island hideaway. Surrounded by some of his closest friends and co-workers (Christian Slater, Simon Rex, Levon Hawke, Geena Davis, Cris Costa and Haley Joel Osment) and flanked by a several other gorgeous women who made the trip (Adria Arjona, Liz Caribel, and Trew Mullen), the crew spends their days in island bliss: smoking weed, drinking, tripping on mind altering substances, eating gourmet food, swimming, and just generally vibin’. But as the good times roll on, Jess begins to feel like something is deeply amiss. Frida ignores the concerns at first, but gradually awakens to the fact that something disturbing and dark is happening on King’s island.
Kravitz and co-writer E.T. Feigenbaum (who previously collaborated on the High Fidelity series) start off examining the vapidity of wealth and all those who seek to be brought into the inner circle of the influential and powerful, before using the thematic substance they’ve cached along the way into something even more shocking and timely. Blink Twice shows off Kravitz’s ability to create captivating images full of movement and life, with great use of colour (particularly pops of red along the way) and a smart amount of subtlety. The opulence on display is obvious, but also rather banal, making a neat visual joke about the ways wealthy influencers want to draw attention to their status, but not necessarily to their lifestyle. (A running gag about King being vexed by the placement of a normal looking armchair is one of the low-key funniest bits in any film this year, and it’s all thanks to Kravitz and Tatum’s unwavering commitment to what the gag stands for.)
Kravitz and her ensemble are able to make the island setting a unique baseline experience upon which the material can build its themes. None of these characters – including Frida – are all that likeable or noble, and some are outright detestable out of the gate, before the film explicitly tips the viewers off to ulterior motives. By that same token, the sun-drenched visuals, picturesque locations, and boundless good times do seem intoxicating; the sorts of things people often use to trick themselves into believing they’re having fun. The men act nice and charming, like they care about what these women have to say, but really they just treat them like novelties at worst and companions at best. Meanwhile, the women all compete with one another to capture the attention of the most powerful person there. The men have a unified front. The women never treat each other like equals.
Kravitz and real life partner Tatum make for a potent duo, with the writer/director knowing precisely how to use their leading man’s trademark charms, for good and for evil, depending on what the script calls for. In what might be the best performance of his career (neck and neck with Foxcatcher), Tatum slowly builds a sense of menace until Blink Twice reaches an emotional breaking point, and even when his mask is off, the character still proves to be the same exact person they were at the start of the film. Kravitz also finds a way to terrifyingly weaponize Tatum’s long noted talents as a dancer, not to entertain, but to frighten and build tension.
The viewer chooses what they want to believe, and Tatum and Kravitz never deviate from their game plan with the character, leading to a surprisingly layered and deeply upsetting performance that pairs perfectly with Ackie’s portrayal of a social climber put into a tense position and all of the amusing character work put in by the supporting cast. Arjona deserves a special shout-out in particular for her memorable turn as a reality show starlet with a great head on her shoulders and some survival skills that will come in handy down the line.
When it comes time for Kravitz to show her hand and reveal what’s truly happening on the island, Blink Twice gets very bleak and disturbing in a hurry, effortlessly turning on a dime. And while some viewers might be able to piece the big twist together before it arrives, it will still hit like a ton of bricks thanks to how shockingly and brutally Kravitz chooses to expose it. It might turn some people off, but it’s meant as a confrontation and provocation in equal measure. Kravitz also takes things a step further with the film’s final scene, which will pose an ethical quandary that lingers and forces the viewer to reconsider everything that happened in the movie, like watching a snake eating itself in perpetuity. It’s a bold, brave flex that ensure Blink Twice as a film that will leave audiences talking about it, even if they question its tactics. It’s exactly the kind of calling card for a first time director wants.
Blink Twice opens in theatres everywhere on Friday, August 23, 2024.
