jane levy | Joy Reviews Movies

I don’t even know how I ended up stumbling across this one on Netflix. It’s a Netflix original and it was really good. I didn’t know what to expect, but at the same time, even if I did expect something, it would have been totally different. Melanie Lynskey is one of those people who I almost always enjoy watching, but never think of as one of my “favourite” actresses. She can do it all and she can do it all well. She just slips herself in there and does a good job but doesn’t seem to get a whole lot of praise for it, which is a shame! And Elijah Wood is always enjoyable to watch too (Maniac remake, anyone? The critics weren’t fans but I enjoyed it!)

I don’t feel at home in this world anymore., with it’s inconveniently long title was an exercise in powerlessness and “riding the wave.” It was weird, it was interesting, it got thrilling really damn fast… it was good! I was impressed! I watched it last night and I’ve been thinking about it all day. Every performance was on point… the story at first felt too thin to carry a feature-length film but it got better.

It was just the right amounts of funny and shocking, but most of all, it was quirky. I’m not sure if it will get a Bluray release since it’s a Netflix film, but if it does.. I want it. And thus ends the shortest movie review I’ve (probably) ever written!

I was so happy when I saw the previews for this movie and I noticed that the director was Fede Alvarez who also directed the remake (reimagining?) of Evil Dead in 2013. Aaaaand that completes his filmography.

He may be a “newbie” at directing, but he is talented. Again, I was kind of blind-sided (pun unintended, but it is a pleasant surprise). I thought it was going to be a cut-and-dry thriller about a B&E gone awry, but what I got was so much more messed up than I could have imagined.

The film-making was fantastic and everything was technically (I feel) flawless. I did, however, find myself in a weird position – there’s no protagonist in this film… no one’s a “good guy” and there’s no one really to root for. The characters constantly make stupid decisions that make it harder for them to get to their end-goal, which I get it, it’s more realistic that way because no one is going to make perfect decisions in an adrenaline-fueled situation. BUT! Having said that, every time I had to say, “oh my god, what are you waiting for? RUN!!!” I was infuriated and liked the main characters a smidgen less.

These three teenagers, desperate for cash and I guess with no other way to get it, break into an old, blind war veteran’s house because they find out he has a shit-ton of money hidden somewhere. They make some dumb, naive decisions that make little sense, and they severely underestimate the skill level of a seemingly weak person with visual impairments.

Jane Levy was absolutely fantastic, as she was in Evil Dead, and plays a strong female lead who doesn’t stop fighting until she absolutely must. She makes for an intense thrill ride that I think no one imagines going in. I will definitely be adding this one to my collection!

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I don’t feel at home in this world anymore. (2017)

Don’t Breathe (2016)