We’re now three months into 2024 and a handful of major horror movies have made their way into theaters including Night Swim, Lisa Frankenstein, and Imaginary. Moreover, a handful of smaller movies have dropped onto streaming and VOD platforms. Overall, however, it’s largely been a quiet year for new releases in general, but that’s extended to horror. Nevertheless, a handful of smaller movies have quietly made their way into the world for horror fans. Among those releases, Double Blind has generated small buzz with a handful of critics.
Synopsis
Claire is a nobody – outside of her sick mother, she has no connections. When she volunteers for an experimental drug trial, Claire doesn’t think she has much to lose. Arriving at a remote facility, she finds six strangers volunteering with little or nothing to lose themselves. As for the drug trial itself – it seem harmless. But the drug has an unexpected side effect – if the participants fall asleep, they die. As the facility locks down, trapping the volunteers, paranoia and fear grip the group and push them toward a brutal fight for survival.
Double Blind Doesn’t Tread New Ground, But Never Feels Recycled
For a debut feature-length effort, director Ian Hunt-Duffy exhibits an impressive confidence and grasp of the material. Yet the story itself doesn’t break any new ground for this type of movie. Writer Darach McGarrigle hits on most of the familiar tropes for this sort of thriller. You know that an experimental drug trial in a horror movie isn’t going to go well otherwise we wouldn’t have a movie. In addition, the idea of an anonymous evil corporation harkens to past blend of horror and dystopian thriller like Cube or The Platform. McGarrigle also borrow elements from Agatha Christie’s ‘And Then There Were None‘ and slasher movies more generally.
…its underlying themes should resonate with horror fans and fans of dystopian fiction.
Even its underlying themes should resonate with horror fans and fans of dystopian fiction. Specifically, Double Blind touches on a familiar story of corporate greed and unethical practices. Moreover, Hunt-Duffy and McGarrigle touch on themes of ‘otherness’ and being unwanted or discarded that tread the same ground as past sci-fi thrillers like They Live. Maybe you might even read a bit of A Nightmare on Elm Street into the thriller’s ‘don’t fall asleep’ narrative, though that’s a bit more of a stretch.
Double Blind Makes The Most Out of Its Claustrophobic Setting
If the threads of its narrative are familiar, Double Blind compensates with tight pacing that effectively exploits its claustrophobic setting. To some extent, Hunt-Duffy demonstrates how execution can elevate a movie above and beyond its story. Though it’s a familiar narrative, Hunt-Duffy fully exploits the single, claustrophobic setting to elicit tension. In terms of its visuals, Double Blind finds simple, but effective ways, to cue audiences to the threshold of its sleeping and waking states. Simply put, Hunt-Duffy’s stylistic touches wring the maximum amount of ambiguity and suspense out of these moments.
Though it’s a familiar narrative, Hunt-Duffy fully exploits the single, claustrophobic setting to elicit tension.
What proves to be most effective, however, are the body horror and the performances. In those scene when its experimental drug take effect, Double Blind is subtly gruesome and very uncomfortable. This isn’t over-the-top gore and violence, which in part contributes to its effectiveness. That is, Hunt-Duffy doesn’t exaggerate the grotesque effects of the drug, opting to ground the bloody outcomes in reality. It’s a creative decision that adds to the discomfort Double Blind elicits from audiences. In spite of its familiar narrative and stock characters, Millie Brady and Akshay Kumar are both compelling and earn empathy for their characters. Much of the mystery around the characters and their intentions plays out as expected. Regardless Double Blind makes it work and never feels like a lazy retread.
Double Blind a Subtly Intense and Visually Impressive Early Horror Effort for 2024
By and large, Double Blind is a taut mix of body horror and mystery thriller. To some extent, no new ground gets broken in Hunt-Duffy’s debut directorial effort. Only the most novice horror fans will be surprised or caught off guard by anything that happens here. Yet Hunt-Duffy holds a tight grip on his thriller and shows off a confident, bold style. In spite of its lack of surprise, the imagery here shocks as it should given the subject matter. Throw in a handful of strong performances and Double Blind proves to be a bold, engaging thriller worthy of a look from horror fans.