Blink Twice

A waitress meets a rich elitist while being clumsy and making mistakes who then takes her and her friends to a secluded island with other people, all is good for a short time until it isn't without spoiling what happens. Zoë Kravitz wrote and directed this so probably knows all about this stuff being a child of the industry. They even make a joke about human sacrifices, which I found very interesting.

Is it well directed? I'd say yes for Zoe's first film but the characters in these movies when there is a group of people and their interactions are kinda boring and generic, what you have seen a million times before until initially two characters get on the same wavelength with what's going on and all hell breaks loose.

Not sure what else I can say without spoiling the film, all is well acted and shot.

The impressive parts of BLINK TWICE do not add up to a satisfying whole. This is a visually appealing film filled with solid performances by accomplished actors. It also is a weird film devoid of thrills, tension, frights, or emotions. Though the performances are good, the characters are undefined. Without improving on them, the script cribs from GLASS ONION, THE MENU, and other limited location thrillers.

When tech billionaire Slater King (Channing Tatum) meets cocktail waitress Frida (Naomi Ackie) at his fundraising gala, sparks fly. He invites her to join him and his friends on a dream vacation on his private island. It's paradise. Wild nights blend into sun-soaked days and everyone's having a great time. Nobody wants this trip to end, but as strange things start to happen, Frida begins to question her reality. Something is wrong with this place. She'll have to uncover the truth if she wants to make it out of this party alive.

I was really looking forward to "Blink Twice" after the trailer caught my eye. Sadly, the movie didn't live up to the hype. It started off pretty slow with too much time spent on party scenes that didn't really go anywhere or add much to the story.

When things finally started to happen, it all felt rushed and the ending was a letdown. It seemed like the film had the pieces to be really interesting but just couldn't put them together in a satisfying way.

Overall, "Blink Twice" has a cool idea but doesn't quite nail the execution. It might be worth a watch if you're curious, but it might not live up to your expectations.

This is mainly due to:

• the very good actors, who are

charismatic and convincing. Especially the role of the self-made billionaire Channing Tatum and Adria Arjona.

Adria Arjona is the secret star of the movie - in my opinion. She looks stunning and plays the funniest scenes in the movie.

• and the story, which keeps you interested in how all of this is going to play out.

Basically, there are some "Saltburn" vibes (the rich invite the normal people to a non-stop party time, separated from the rest of the world) and some "Get Out" vibes. (Something seems wrong here).

The soundtrack is also really nice.

An absolutely brilliant choice of music, mainly soul/funk/Disco. Rufus with Chaka Khan, James Brown, and more.

And the movie is funny. It's almost a comedy, even though it's actually a brutal mystery thriller.

I recommend checking out this little gem. Don't listen to the extremely negative reviews. Haters gonna hate.

I was excited to watch a new original movie I knew nothing about, going in without watching a trailer. Overall, it's a mostly a solid movie, but never reaches the highs it could have. It doesn't seem to maximize the potential created by the setup. This could be for a few reasons.

It starts with an interesting premise that had me mildly intrigued. We get to the island quickly, but we sort of meander in the island party life for far too long. We know something fishy is going on, but the plot does not progress. It's almost a full hour into the movie before anything big happens.

I found myself getting impatient, and that's without watching the trailer. Now after seeing the trailer (which gives away SO much), it was likely significantly worse for anyone who watched it beforehand. They already knew what was coming and had to wait the majority of the runtime for it to get to that point.

By comparison, Midsommar is a full hour longer (Director's cut is double the runtime of Blink Twice). And it also has a scene of them enjoying some drugs, which is much funnier. Yet it has several creepy scenes building tension, even in the first 30 minutes. That's how you keep your audience invested and in suspense, even for a 3-hour movie.

Another reason I feel like this misses is the dark comedy aspect. I LOVE dark comedies (Beau is Afraid omg). But I only laughed a few times in Blink Twice, and it wasn't for lack of trying. Several other attempts fall flat.

I think Zoe Kravitz is a highly talented actress. I'm also basically in love with her and watch most movies she's in. But directing is a vastly different skill set, as is writing. It probably wasn't wise to take on both in her directorial debut. It's solid for a first effort, and she may have a future in this field. But it does feel off in many ways, which made sense when I found out it was a directorial debut.

But why not focus on acting? She should be getting major lead roles in top-quality movies with elite directors. Very few actors stay relevant in their older years. That's when you can write and direct. And in the meantime, continue gaining valuable experience while maximizing your time as a star actress.

One other note that has zero bearing on my rating. Was anyone else distracted by the lead actress's teeth gap? I couldn't stop looking at it, lol.

I can see some people liking this. But I think most will find it underwhelming.

(1 viewing, opening Thursday 8/22/2024)