Blind man’s bluff
Burglars become victims in terrifying ‘Don’t Breathe’
Giving a twist to the haunted house thriller, “Don't Breathe” earns its startling scares and deathly chills in a creepy, isolated Detroit home surrounded by abandoned buildings and empty streets.
Into this deserted ghost town of a neighborhood venture three clueless teens with a dream of a big — and easy — score, made by robbing its lone occupant.
That would be a blind vet (chillingly embodied by muscular Stephen Lang) who is hardly a cowering pushover.
“Don't Breathe,” co-written and directed by “Evil Dead” helmer Fede Alvarez, begins by showing how this misbegotten trio works.
Sensitive, thoughtful Alex (Logan Lerman lookalike Dylan Minnette) steals the victims' home alarm company codes from his dad. Alex knows they can avoid serious prison time if caught by following rules — like no weapons and only small hauls.
Money (Daniel Zovatto), with tats and a temper, is the wild card, too crazy to ever be calm, with delusions that he's a tough guy.
Then there's blonde, stressedout Rocky (Jane Levy, the star of Alvarez's “Evil Dead”), whose mother is a nightmare and who sees a big score as the way to exit the Motor City for SoCal with her 5-year-old sister.
Once they're ready to break in, they get a chilly jolt of foreboding: Every window has steel bars, doors have multiple security locks and then there's the decidedly fierce Rottweiler eager for fresh meat.
If there isn't a sign that proclaims “Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter” — there should be!
Just as obviously, once inside they find themselves trapped.
How quiet can they be standing still in a room as a blind guy with a gun is two feet away and ready to kill?
“Don't Breathe” never reaches hysterical heights of fright but steadily charts this deadly game of catch-me-ifyou-can with brutal, homicidal efficiency.
Minnette makes Alex almost heroic in his determination to help Rocky, his not-so-secret crush. Rocky does the heavy lifting, especially when their tormentor reveals a couple of horrible, unexpected surprises. Levy makes her smart, stupid and fearless, sometimes simultaneously.
(“Don’t Breathe” has disturbing explicit violence, adult language.)