Warning Spoilers Ahead • 3rd Viewing
Bro, they should’ve never gone for that sediment.
Wow, has it really been half a decade already since this came out? I must admit that Don’t Breathe still holds a special place in my heart considering just how ginormous of a thing it was back when I was still in high school. I remember me and my friends, classmates, family being uber curious about where the sequel would head given how open ended the conclusion of it was, assuming that it was on the way soon especially when taking into account how much of a success it was in theaters. Nonetheless, since these five years have passed by with no word of a sequel until now, the hype has pretty much diminished for it at this point.
Don’t Breathe has some really great concept horror in it. I mean, not only is this a cat and mouse movie about burglars trying to rob a HIGHLY SKILLED BLIND ARMY VET of anything, but from the steroid of a hunting dog to the antagonist’s psychotic equity philosophy, there is an absolute madness of kooky ideas in this film that make it at least more interesting than a lot of the other high-produced modern horror. However, its execution is decent at best given the fairly constant amount of dumb s**t that happens in it, and I’m not talking about that magnificent insanity of a twist for which has been probably the most controversial element about the film to the public, but dumb s**t like a robber’s non-silenced phone ringing off conveniently while Stephen Lang is holding a gun point-blank at two of the characters. This is certainly no Panic Room (2002) when it comes to its intense craftsmanship or what it has to say socially — if it had really anything to say which I’m still deciphering from its half-baked law commentary — but considering this is my third viewing of the film and I still felt engaged by it, that’s impressive enough for me to give the film a pass. Stuff like the dimmed light sequence are still, again, too killer of concept implementations to be turning down this movie as a complete failure.
But if I’m being frank, I think the selling point of this movie for me will always be the part where Jane Levy shoves a turkey baster full of a rapist’s own cum into his mouth. It never ceases to impress me when it comes to what I may see in movies…
Verdict: B-
“Don’t Breathe” is now available to rent on Amazon Prime.
Burning the Celluloid 
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