So the best movie of the summer and maybe the best horror film of the year is about white kids in Detroit robbing a blind guy. Yup. Not Suicide Squad, Lights Out, Conjuring fucking 58, Batman Vs Superman, or even hot dogs fucking. Nope. Just a low-budge crime horror flick that relies on good ol’ fashioned tension and stakes.
This film should be assigned to all storytelling 101 classes for fiction or screenwriters. I hope and pray David Akers and Zack Snyder watch this if they make sequels of either of their franchises.
In the opening scene, we meet 3 thieves who show Oceans 11-13 is bullshit and there is nothing glamorous about having to steal to get your needs met. I personally hate thieves, but I rooted for them right away—actually only two of them, because I am philosophically against non-African Americans having cornrows.
That is pretty much all I can say without giving much away, or than that they are going to rob a blind man. I can say that when they are in the house I chewed the fuck out my fingernails. The tension, stakes, and plot twists build towards scares that predominantly take place inside of a shitty house. It’s great piece of crime, horror, and minimalist storytelling.
I remember having to piss so bad, but staying put cause I had to see what happens next. It’s that type of film, and there is never a moment of boredom.
Though there is no supernatural element, it felt like I was watching a mixture of a Haunted House and a Heist film, with a dash of Cloverfield Lane.
I was thoroughly satisfied from beginning to end, which I haven’t been able to say much this year. It’s not a perfect film but it is probably one of the best films of the year.
Christoph Paul is an award-winning humor writer and publisher of New English Press. His most recent books are Slasher Camp for Nerd Dorks and Great White House 2: Billary Bites Back. His next book will be a poetry collection titled “Horror Film Poems.” Find him on Twitter @Christophpaul_ and Christophpaulauthor.com.