Don't Breathe 2

While not a great movie, Don't Breathe 2 is a sequel that manages to stand out in a year that has seen a lot of uninspired and rehashed follow ups, and does so by turning the premise of the original on its head just a little.  Whereas last time, the mysterious blind man Norman Nordstrom (once again played by Stephen Lang) was portrayed as a villain and a mystery, this movie is told from his perspective, putting us in the corner of someone who created dread and tension last time.

And yet, returning screenwriters Fede Álvarez and Rodo Sayagues (who has directing duties this time) are smart in how they tackle this tricky angle.  They do not try to humanize Norman too much, nor do they make him misunderstood.  He openly admits to doing horrible things in the past, and even calls himself a "monster" late in the film.  The movie does not forget the things we saw him do last time when he menaced three young hoods who tried to break into his house, or how he had an innocent woman being held against her will in his basement in that movie.  Lang's performance is surprisingly complex, creating a character who can be sympathetic, violent, and mournful.  It's kind of a fascinating character too, and I'm glad this movie goes deeper into him, rather than just placing him in the same role we saw him in before.

Norman was once a decorated Navy SEAL who lost his sight during the Gulf War.  As we learned previously, he is still more than capable of defending himself, and uses his military fighting techniques and knowledge on anyone unfortunate enough to cross his path.  As the film opens, Norman has been raising a young girl named Phoenix (Madelyn Grace), whom he found abandoned outside of a burning house eight years ago.  He's kept the girl under his constant care and protection, seldom letting her leave the house.  Now that Phoenix is reaching her teens, she is becoming more curious about the world and other kids.  He has taught her survival skills, and tries to assure her she has everything she needs, but even Norman seems to be able to feel that he can't keep her close forever.

During one of her rare outdoor adventures with Norman's trusted friend, Hernandez (Stephanie Arcila), Phoenix happens to come upon some punks who seem strangely interested in her, and follow her back to her home, where they try to stage a siege on the house in order to kidnap her.  To say what their motivation and their interest in Phoenix is would be spoiling the plot, so I will have to tread carefully here.  However, the movie pulls off the neat trick of creating a similar scenario from the first movie, except whereas last time the film was told from the view of the intruders who were trapped in the house, this time we follow Norman as events unfold.  Again, it handles this well, as it suddenly doesn't make his character "the good guy".  We learn that he still has plenty of secrets, and he is just as prone to bloody acts of violence as before.

Don't Breathe 2 is a B-Movie that is better made than you might expect.  It used to be that you could tell a low budget film from its cheesy look, but not so here.  The movie has an attractive look and a certain style, even though a majority of the scenes are shot at night or in dark rooms.  Despite the stylish images, the script is about what you would expect.  The villains are as dumb as a bag of rocks here, as they have numerous opportunities for which they could easily kill Norman, but they either don't take their chance, or suddenly decide they can't do it for one reason or another, giving him time to turn the tables on them.  This is also a much more brutal and violent film than before, but it never comes across as excessive, and knows when to pull back.

I think what just barely nudges this movie to a recommendation from me is that I appreciated its stance on all the characters inhabiting the film.  Aside from little Phoenix, everyone here is a killer, or has done horrible things in their pasts.  The script constantly walks a fine line.  When we do learn just why the leader of the punks is interested in the girl, it's actually kind of understandable, and it throws the girl and everything she thinks she knows in a different light.  Of course, the film kind of kills this complexity with later plot revelations that are kind of unnecessary, and are supposed to make the character a complete villain, rather than the more interesting and challenging character he potentially could have been.  The movie does make some wrong turns, but I was never bored by it, and I think it finds an interesting and oddly heartfelt note to end on.

Even if Don't Breathe 2 is nowhere near as good as the first (it's definitely much less suspenseful), it still finds an intriguing angle for the character of Norman that kept me engaged.  It may be cheesy, but it never hides or denies it, and manages to get a few unique ideas in.

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