‘Blink Twice’ Movie Review: Zoë Kravitz’s Twisted Thriller Is More Than Just A Great Time
Photo from Amazon MGM Studios
From Jeremy Kibler
Zoë Kravitz’s incendiary directorial debut is a lot like Jordan Peele’s Get Out — it’s a social thriller with something to say but never forgets to entertain the hell out of you. Narratively, it has its own twisted pleasures and should inspire discussion afterward without coming across as a didactic lecture. Blink Twice (previously titled Pussy Island) entices and subverts expectations as a playfully threatening ride.
Knowing as little as possible should be the way to go for any film, but that sense of discovery is very vital in Blink Twice. Tech billionaire Slater King (Channing Tatum) makes a public apology for his bad behavior and admits to being a changed man. He’s also bought a private island. During a charity gala, roommates Frida (Naomi Ackie) and Jess (Alia Shawkat), who are moonlighting as cocktail waitresses, blend in with fancy dresses and attend the party. The champagne flows, they meet Slater’s entourage—therapist Rich (Kyle MacLachlan), scattered assistant Stacy (Geena Davis), childhood pal Cody (Simon Rex), left-and-right-hand man Vic (Christian Slater), and ex-sitcom star Tom (Haley Joel Osment)—and before you know it, both women are whisked away to his island to continue the party. Everything they need to wear is in their separate villa. The food is exquisite. A glass of champagne, complete with a raspberry, is always filled. But then something seems off. What day is it? How long have they actually been there? Is forgetting really a gift?
With Blink Twice, a luxurious lifestyle gets pushed to the disturbing brink. There are plenty of clues that something bad is afoot. When everything seems too good to be true, Jess even jokes about the human sacrifice being before or after dinner. As the film darkens and corkscrews, Kravitz confidently criss-crosses different tones, even in the same scene, from an all-smiles, no-worries bacchanalia to a memory-wiping nightmare. The script, co-written by Kravitz and E.T. Feigenbaum, finds an ingeniously sick and fresh way into the cultural movement of women who weren’t believed and were told to smile more. How every piece meticulously clicks into place may take another viewing, but the idea of “forgiving and forgetting” certainly gets turned on its ear.
In watching Blink Twice, it’s absolutely clear that everyone in every department seems to be working at an elevated level. Adam Newport-Berra’s cinematography is lush and elegant. There’s a snappy, airtight rhythm to the editing, throwing one off-kilter and disorienting when characters are so far down the hallucinogenic, cannabis- and alcohol-infused rabbit hole.
Every actor is terrific, right down to Liz Caribel and Trew Mullen as perpetually high party girls Camilla and Heather. Leading the smashing ensemble, Naomi Ackie (who played Whitney Houston in I Wanna Dance with Somebody) is an excellent emotional conduit, as it is through Frida how the viewer enters and leaves this heightened reality. Her chemistry with a very funny Alia Shawkat is irresistible and feels lived-in. Then, at a later point in the film, Ackie and a spectacular Adria Arjona, as “Survivor”-style show contestant Sarah, become a team, and their undaunted moxie is thrilling and cathartic to watch. As the all-powerful Slater King, Channing Tatum is predictably charming but also terrifying; he has one particular moment involving a repetitive apology that’s just chilling.
Blink Twice is as darkly hilarious and wickedly entertaining as it is angrily confrontational and provocative. Everything does, indeed, reach a tense fever pitch once Chaka Khan and Rufus’ memorably used “Ain’t Nobody” sounds, paying off in a brutal, blood-soaked crowd-pleaser of a finale. A film with a few cards under its sleeve isn’t always going to stick the landing, but Kravitz nails it. You won’t have a good time but a great time.
Rating: 4.5/5
Blink Twice hits theaters on August 23th, 2024.
