directed by:
Chris Kinzie written by: Chris Kinzie genre: Drama, Thriller |
Charlie seems like he's in way over his head – and Joe seems downright dangerous. I dig that Writer/Director Chris Kinzie chose to shoot this film in black & white as it really seems to suit it. "Blind Escape" tells a tale of mistaken identity, whereby young 'Charlie,' as we know him, receives a call in the middle of the night from someone who believes he's his aunt & wants to give him an owed inheritance of thirty thousand dollars. You've got to admit - there's a heck of a lot more potential to collect in a situation like that than the hundred Nigerian princes that email me every week to give me their money. Anyhow – "Blind Escape" shows you what might happen if you decide to take that call seriously. Thirty thousand is a lot of money for most of us, and it certainly seems appealing to Charlie, who quickly shakes himself from his slumber & immediately drives out to collect his unexpected inheritance.
Soon enough, Charlie is on the farm…or ranch…with an aunt that's expecting him to look after it for a couple of months in exchange for the money coming to him. Charlie spies the beautiful Maggie living next door and the looming trouble of Joe, the resident bad boy of the neighbourhood. Joe's got that kind of inexplicable aggression that comes straight outta noir films like "Blue Velvet" – he can go from seeming completely chill to the angriest of angry - within mere seconds. With Charlie's affinity for his girlfriend, we see Joe and his temper flare up for the majority of the time we see him onscreen, continuously reminding us (and Charlie) who the alpha male is in this story. There's an odd power dynamic at work overall here, which you'll see in scenes like when Joe takes Charlie out for the day and threatens him along with a gang of his friends. Yet, when Charlie demands at least half of the money that's coming to him with absolutely zero leverage, Joe seems to acquiesce for some reason. Like I was saying in that reference to "Blue Velvet" and its notorious villain, Joe has that same unpredictable quality that feels continually creepy, even when he appears nice for a moment or two. Even when he gives Charlie a gun later in the movie, you still sense that Joe somehow retains the upper hand. I really liked how Chris chose to blur the line between what's real and what's not as the movie plays on. Once Charlie gets a gun in his hand, we really start to see a shift in "Blind Escape" that takes us through several scenes designed to keep us guessing as to what's really going on and what's really going to happen to the characters. Maggie is clearly in an abusive relationship, but does lying Charlie really hold the key to putting her on the path to a better life, or is he just going to create more trouble for her, too? "Blind Escape" keeps us guessing, and Kinzie's done a solid job of keeping us watching by ensuring that the tension of this story continues to build scene after scene. Acting-wise, Joe (played by Preston Ware) was outstanding. I also thought Maggie (played by Jazmin Diebler) was great all the way through this movie as well. Charlie, the movie's lead (played by Evan Jackson Moore), had some really strong moments, and I think that any of his more questionable spots likely come from a script that moves to a different beat & pulse than most films tend to have. It's unfamiliar terrain for them, and for us; it also dabbles in what's real and what's not through Charlie's delusions, and that admittedly leads his particular character to have a few more uneven moments along the way, but for the most part, I liked him and what Jackson Moore brought to this movie onscreen. The sparing use of colour towards the end will help clarify what's really taken place once & for all, which was a really smart move in Kinzie's direction, and I felt like "Blind Escape" ended up with a solid conclusion in the finale of this twisted tale.
On the technical front, I think Kinzie did an exceptional job with the way he chose to shoot this movie. I think he did an excellent job of showing us the key details and walking the line between making something that has widespread appeal and potential cult-like status. There's a balance on display. Many of the scenes are drawn out and extended to their limitations, with the camera often hanging onto what you see longer than most would keep shooting for in the Kubrick-esque type of way that manages to make us uncomfortable in just about every second shot. I like that kind of stuff – it's quirky and unsettling, but it also makes us think and consider the things we see & hear. On the audio front, I wish more could have been done. When things are silent, or there's just ambient sound, he's done a sensational job of capturing the calm or eerie feelings in "Blind Escape," but things tend to get dicey whenever there's dialogue. You either keep the volume up to maximum to catch every word, hoping that Chris isn't about to blast more soundtrack way above the rest of the mix right around the corner, or you risk missing some details. Not sure if that's microphone placement or what, but this couldn't have been something that escaped Kinzie when he examined the final product, so it's a bit perplexing that it has been left as-is when it comes to the volume issues. You get the sense that Chris is aware of this, though, and you'll notice he plays to his strengths, often shooting scenes without any dialogue at all, letting the actions of the characters speak louder than the words – this was a very smart move on his part. In fact, many of the most powerful and potent scenes in "Blind Escape" hardly use any words at all, which I felt was a bit of an admission from Kinzie that he knows he's got some decent-sized audio issues. All in all, I enjoyed this! It's cohesive storytelling, shot extremely well, and has palpable tension to it. I feel like some of us out there who have seen our fair share of films will probably see the ending of "Blind Escape" coming, but I can certainly respect the way this story is artfully told onscreen to get us there, and kinda marvel at how Kinzie was able to do so much of that without the use of all that many words. I'm going with three and a half stars out of five here. There's a solid chance that within about ten minutes of "Blind Escape," you'll know whether you're in or out and that a movie like this tends to have more niche appeal overall, but those who choose to stick with it will dig what they find. |
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