'Blink Twice' is a promising directional debut for Zoë Kravitz
I finally saw Blink Twice, here are my thoughts!
*This review contains spoilers*
Blink Twice released in theatres on August 23rd and I finally got around to watching it on Friday. The psychological thriller is actress, Zoë Kravitz’s first time directing, so I was really looking forward to it.
I would like to point out from the start that there is a trigger warning for sexual violence for this film, so I would keep this in mind if you are thinking of watching, as it does include scenes that can be disturbing for some.
In Blink Twice, cocktail waitress, Frida (Naomi Ackie) and her friend, Jess (Alia Shawkat) are invited to tech billionaire, Slater King’s (Channing Tatum) private island. As the audience, you suspect from the start that there is more to this island than what meets the eye.
In an interview with Indiewire, Kravitz actually explains that she wanted the story to take place on an island so that the characters were isolated from the outside world. This separation is apparent from the start, as they are asked to give up their phones on arrival and each person is provided matching white outfits. This all feels a little cult-like and dystopian. However, blindsided by her crush on Slater King, Frida follows the “rules” of the island. When certain events start to raise alarm bells, she eventually takes it upon herself to investigate, unravelling the unsettling truth of the island.
The concept of Blink Twice is interesting but not that unique. It is similar to ideas we’ve become familiar with after seeing them in films like Don’t Worry Darling and Saltburn, yet I would argue that Blink Twice does a better job at depicting these societal issues. Overall, I enjoyed Blink Twice. There are good and bad elements that I will get into, but as a whole, I would recommend this film to anyone who enjoys psychological thrillers because it is definitely not a bad one.
I’ll admit, I didn’t start to enjoy the movie until the characters arrived on the island. Before this, I thought the introductions were quite forced when they could’ve been a little more subtle and therefore believable. I felt that because they had to get on the island somehow, the audience just had to accept the way Frida and Slater were introduced. Tripping and “falling” in order to get the attention of someone is a bit of a cliché and I found it slightly corny, but after enjoying the rest of the film, it became a minor discrepancy.
Performances from Channing Tatum and Naomi Ackie were commendable. Prior to this, I was unsure how Tatum would perform as the antagonist in a thriller but he did a great job at showing what made Slater King so charming to Frida, while also convincingly showing how calculated, disturbing, and sinister he really is. Naomi Ackie was also perfect. She did a great job at playing Frida and her performance truly displayed her talents.
Sometimes, thrillers can get boring. Especially when you feel like you’re waiting for something to happen, or minor details are dragged out for too long. I didn’t feel this way with Blink Twice and I was actually engaged throughout. I’ve seen some people feel adversely about the pacing and engagement of the movie but for me it didn’t feel like time dragged. I think that the montage of their time on the island emphasised to the audience how quickly days seemed to pass and how they almost all blended into one at the same time.
The tone of the movie was a little shifty at times. By this, I mean that one minute things were serious and dark, and the next they were funny, or scary. I understand that this is the point of the film, and that things are supposed to appear fun to the visitors when actually, there’s a real dangerous abuse of power taking place. The combination of these attributes sometimes felt displaced though, because the vibe switched up at strange times, but again, I don’t think it necessarily made the movie bad or unenjoyable, it is just something that I found myself questioning at times.
It is no secret that the colours yellow and red play a huge role. They are the main colours on every film poster and were prominent throughout the movie too. The yellow towels were a stand out feature along with Jess’ yellow lighter with the smiley face which was constantly passed around on the island. There were many close-ups of this lighter which makes me question if there is also a deeper connection to be made. Additionally, lots of attention was placed on the red party bags often seen carried by Stacy (Geena Davis) and Slater’s chair that was “never in the right place” was also red. Maybe the red nods to the “red rabbit” aspect of the twist, or maybe the contrast in colours shows the “happy”, idealistic, bright, and seemingly perfect aspect of the trip (yellow) and the red hints at the sinister, more grotesque side of the island that lies underneath.
There are a couple of instances where Slater asks Frida, “are you having a good time?”. The first time he asks, she responds “yes” and seems genuine, but as the days go on and the question is repeated, you can tell that some doubt is starting to creep in. As noted by IndieWire, this phrase becomes weaponised and it is more and more obvious that Frida feels forced to say yes and smile because the question is not actually a question, it is more of a threat. It is essentially a way of saying “you better be having a good time".
The Plot Twist
Early on in the film, Frida notices that the red stain on her dress had disappeared and she didn’t know how. A couple days later, she notices dirt under her nails that she can’t explain. We see Frida’s confusion as she picks up on these minor details but she doesn’t seem to give them much more thought.
The cleaner lady appears multiple times, and something seems off about her, but no one knows what. She repeatedly points at Frida, saying she recognises her as “red rabbit” but Frida assumes she is mistaken. When Frida grows curious about the red party bags, she comes across the cleaner lady again. This time she is drinking a green liquid from a flask and offers Frida some too. Assuming it is alcohol, Frida takes a sip, only to be repulsed by its strong taste, realising it is in fact snake venom.
Later that night, Jess is bitten by a venomous snake. The next morning, she is nowhere to be seen. Prior to her disappearance, Jess had expressed her concerns about the island to Frida, who essentially brushes them off because she likes Slater and therefore isn’t suspicious. Frida is the only one who notices Jess is missing and becomes frustrated and angry when the other girls don’t even remember Jess, despite them stealing her lighter the whole holiday.
After Jess’ disappearance, the movie’s tone shifts. Frida is now suspicious of the island, and her upset about Jess turns to anger. She confides in Sarah (Adria Arjona), and together they realise that something isn’t right. Frida begins to remember the night before, whereas no one else does. The pair quickly realise that the snake venom Frida drank is an antidote that stops their memories from being forgotten.
As the story unfolds, they learn that the perfume they used every day was causing them to forget the events of each night, and explained why none of the girls except Frida, who had the venom, could remember Jess. This reveal gives a new, sinister meaning to when Slater tells Frida that “forgetting is a gift”.
As Sarah and Frida manage to find a way for the other girls to drink snake venom, the memories from the previous night begin to rush back. The scenes from each night are incredibly disturbing and vicious. The women were used, and over-powered by men that were seemingly trustworthy and promised them a vacation of a lifetime.
The events that follow are quite gruesome, as we see the women get their revenge.
A standout shot from the movie is when Frida and Sarah march back towards the villa, covered in blood, while Beyoncé’s “I’m That Girl” plays. Some could view this slow-mo shot of the two as cheesy but I actually thought it was quite cool. I also must mention that Sarah became one of my favourite characters and I thought Adria played her really well.
I thought the plot twist finished there. Of course I had forgotten the whole “red rabbit” aspect mentioned by the cleaner. It is revealed that Frida has been on the island before. On her last visit, she had a “red rabbit” design on nails and her attempted escape led to the injury that caused her scar aside her eye. At this point, everything comes together. The scene where Frida is remembering her previous visit and Slater is sat in his chair (that is finally in the right place) is very intense yet visually appealing. The aesthetic actually reminded me of Fontaines D.C’s music video for the song “I Love You” because of the candles and dark, low-key lighting. It was incredibly sinister and almost ritualistic which made the reveal that Frida replaced Slater’s vape liquid with that perfume a lot more gripping and powerful.
The Ending
From what I’ve seen online, the ending of the film has divided audiences. After the events that took place, Frida stays with Slater. They are married, she is now known as Frida King and she is the new CEO of TechKing. She seems to continue to spike his vape liquid with the perfume to not only keep him oblivious of the past but also take advantage of his wealth.
Some viewers have argued that “two wrongs don’t make a right” so she shouldn’t have continued the cycle. A lot of people would’ve probably wanted to see Slater suffer the consequences of his actions and therefore find the ending unsatisfactory, whereas others agree and think that rinsing him of his riches and making him suffer memory loss like the rest, is consequence enough.
The ending is unexpected for sure. Could the movie have gone further? Possibly, and I can see how some people think that it fell flat in some ways. However, the ending could not make the movie a deal breaker for me. It was definitely an unexpected ending and I think that Kravitz did the right thing in making it less predictable, whether you believe it was the right ending or not. Nonetheless, I can confidently say that I enjoyed Blink Twice.
It is a promising debut for Zoë Kravitz, and although the main concept is fairly obvious from the start, and there are some minor flaws, it was still a good watch for me. My last few cinema visits left me disappointed, so it was refreshing to come out a film that I did enjoy. I would recommend you to give Blink Twice a try if psychological thrillers are your thing, because it definitely presents some thought provoking ideas. I hope Kravitz sticks to this genre and I look forward to whatever she does next.
My Rating: ★★★.5/5
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I also enjoyed the movie and while I get how people are split on the ending I actually like that it didn't go where I expected it to. And the final girl strut with Frida and Sarah was SO GOOD.
I enjoyed this film