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Blink Twice; 2024; written by Zoe Kravitz & E.T. Feigenbaum; directed by Zoe Kravitz; Starring Naomi Ackie, Channing Tatum; Alia Shawkat, Geena Davis, and Christian Slater; Rated R; 1h42m; Amazon; Theatrically released Aug 22nd.
Blink Twice opens with a card informing the audience the film that will follow has themes of gaslighting, abuses of power, and other heavy issues. My wife and I looked at one another, saying “Isn’t that what the ratings board is for?” Yes, it is; and people should do their own research before watching something if it may have an effect. But honestly, it was a good choice for Amazon Studios to put it there. Blink Twice is a tougher film than its trailer would suggest. It’s a damned good one too, if not without some tonal and pacing issues.
Zoe Kravitz has already made a name for herself in the entertainment world (besides the one provided by her famous parents; yes a headstart but she’s solid) with roles in Mad Max: Fury Road, The Batman, Kimi (with those dealing with power imbalances like Blink Twice), and the fantastic but underseen High Fidelity TV adaptation. Her talents continue into writing (with E.T. Feigenbaum) and directing with her debut in this role with a cool, confident hand, with a cadre of fantastic performers.
Like so many others, Frida (Naomi Ackie, Lady Macbeth) is obsessed with Slater King (Channing Tatum, having a solid summer after Deadpool & Wolverine and Fly Me to the Moon), a disgraced millionaire returning to the spotlight after a year on his own private island. She and her bestie Jess (Alia Shawkat, Arrested Development) work at a fancy catering service and just want to get his attention for a minute at a gala he’s hosting. Her wish is granted, and the pair are taken off to the private island with King and his friends, employees, and hangers-on (including Haley Joel Osment, Simon Rex, Geena Davis, Kyle MacLaughlin, and Christian Slater). What’s better than a never-ending party on a beautiful island? Food, drinks, drugs, and debauchery abound.
With stylish grace, Kravitz builds this wild world to be enticing but also with the looming danger. We know eventually the pristine paradise will come crashing down, but how? The cracks in the foundation begin to show as Frida and survival reality show star Sarah (Adria Arjona, Andor) realize they’re having memory issues, they and others have strange bruises, and the staff either seems to be threatening or warning them. When Jess vanishes, and no one else remembers her, Frida knows for sure it’s all wrong.
It’s no spoiler or surprise it’s a dangerous island. But how wrong and how dangerous is the question for the viewer to try to puzzle out with Frida. Kravitz relishes in slowly expanding said cracks to peer into the mystery. She has confidence in the story and how she’s telling it to let it open up without showing her hand to the audience. Perhaps takes a little longer to let the shoe drop than needed, but it’s a minor quibble. Especially in the way Kravitz and Feigenbaum elect to make the reveal double-leveled, so it’s paid off well.
And when she does allow the reveal, it’s uncompromising and totally fucked. It’s a shock and might be triggering and take out some viewers in becoming too real to their circumstances. I get that. Thus, the warning at the start. And also thus the tonal issue. The trailer starts with someone saying “So, everyone’s dead. Now what?” indicating a more wry film. In many ways, the film is a dark comedy so it does match a bit; there is humor entrenched in the story. That balance works fine for most of the runtime. It’s all fun and games until it’s not and then deadly serious. Like the whiplash of Showgirls, you’re laughing at (and along with, I’m still convinced Verhohervin achieved exactly his aim) the film until That Scene and suddenly uncomfortable. (A local theatre shows the film with a live host occasionally. But with that scene cut). It’s fine to make that shift, but it’s strange to keep trying to cut in the dark laughter in the back portion of the film.
Once it all comes, it comes fast. A little too fast, mayhaps. As soon as the film hits a big run, it’s a 100-meter dash. Bloody and satisfying, but far shorter than it feels it should be after the lead-in.
Ackie and company are a solid cast, playing it all to perfection; a big plus in having the director being an established actor herself. It’s a game of knowing who knows what, when, and how much. Kravitz leads her team to play it just right, giving the audience just enough to read into.
Blink Twice is a solid directorial debut from Zoe Kravitz, exuding a sense of confident storytelling with a fantastic cast and an uncompromising and often vicious story. Minor tonal and pacing issues don’t throw off what works.
B+
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