Hold Your Breath

The premise for "Hold Your Breath" seemed promising and the fact that the movie has an R rating and Sarah Paulson as the lead character made me curious. Sadly there is not too much going on in this Psychological Thriller. Apart from the setting and the performance of Paulsen, there's not much to be seen here. You are introduced to the same tropes that we see over and over again in this genre. The characters aren't interesting enough to make me really care about what happens which is not the fault of the actors by the way because the overall acting was pretty solid. However the movie definitely has a pacing problem and even the end was not able to redeem the viewer. The movie isn't terrible but I was really hoping for more and not this clichee-filled and rather forgettable movie. [4,9/10]

This is a beautifully shot film with solid performances from Sarah Paulson and the supporting cast. The main issue is that the arc of the story is not smoothly formed, so what starts off as an intriguing slow burn takes some quick turns that seem to come out of nowhere and the entire movie falls apart. The suspense and thrills are minimum here, so it is more of a drama than anything that could approach the horror or thriller genre. I suspect Paulson took this role because it seemed like a good opportunity to exercise her acting chops, but without a well crafted character arc, her performance ends up feeling real in each scene but unsatisfying as a whole.

It's 1933 Oklahoma. Margaret Bellum (Sarah Paulson) is struggling to survive the dust bowl with her two daughters after her husband left to find work. Her youngest is deaf and fears a demonic dust man. Instead, preacher Wallace Grady (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) shows up promising miracles.

I know that this wants to be a poetic horror fantasy family drama thriller. It doesn't actually deliver on any one of those things although it delivers something from each one of them. I want this to go harder on the horror or thrills or the family drama. Pick one. This could be a cool horror. I can see the dust storm as something unique. Wallace could be a scarier presence or maybe someone less obvious. No matter what, I would like this to pick one lane and go harder in that lane.

I have just finished watching this movie on Disney+ and came away with a few points of view in this movie.

1) if your looking for a fast paced horror film then your watching the ring movie, this was more like a psychological thriller.

2) the acting from all involved was top notch but Sarah Paulson stole the show, I have yet to see a horrible performance from her.

3) it had a nice small twist near the end, now it wasn't one of these wow I didn't see it coming jump out your seat shock but it made the movie a lot better.

Now this movie will not be everyone's cup of tea but do your in the mood for a slow moving movie with a slight twist towards the end, this film is for you but if your looking a fast paced. Bloody movie then this one is not for you.

I thought it was well worth a watch and did enjoy it.

I don't get the low ratings & bad reviews of this at all. I was engaged and on the edge of my seat the entire time. Sarah Paulson is a great actress, she really shines in the horror genre, and this is no exception. It wasn't revolutionary in any way, but I thought it was solid. The visuals & cinematography are really effective, they really evoke the terror and tension of the moment. I also appreciated the run time, and the story was nicely paced. I also haven't seen a horror movie in this setting before, (depression era dust bowl) and the poverty and trauma of living in those conditions wove into the story and horror effectively. I really felt the panic. Great casting too! Worth your time!