By Bob Grimm
Zoë Kravitz makes a watchable—and appropriately unpleasant—directorial debut with Blink Twice, a caustic and vicious social satire that gives Channing Tatum a massive showcase. The movie doesn’t completely hold together and unravels a bit as it plays out, but it packs enough wallops to earn a watch … a tense, unsettling watch.
Frida (Naomi Ackie) and Jess (Alia Shawkat) are servers at a fundraiser led by Slater (Tatum), a billionaire trying to atone for some recent sins. The two unexpectedly wind up on his plane flying to his private island. There, they wind up partying hard with a league of other privileged guests, including minor celebrity Sarah (Adria Arjona), who was in some survival/challenge shows on TV.
Other guests include Tom (Haley Joel Osment), Vic (Christian Slater), Cody (Simon Rex) and Lucas (Levon Hawke, another talented Uma Thurman/Ethan Hawke offspring).
The vaping, smiling Slater seems to be a generous host, and the partygoers all seem harmless, but some strange happenings involving snakes, perfumes and drugs are hints that something sinister may be afoot.
Kravitz (who co-wrote the twisty script with E.T. Feigenbaum) interweaves themes of therapy and trauma as the stay on the island starts to get long and spooky.
Tatum gets some moments to truly go off in what winds up being one of his best performances, while Ackie and Shawkat shine as they negotiate some difficult and progressively unpleasant material. While things start off as a bit funny, you probably won’t be laughing too much in the final act.
This is a movie where the less a reviewer says, the better. Kravitz plays with some heady themes here, and it is a bit much at times; that results in a slightly uneven vibe despite the good elements. Still, Blink Twice is a daring debut, and I can’t help but be curious about what she does next.
Blink Twice is playing at theaters across Northern California.
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