‘Blink Twice’ is a middling island thriller
Zoe Kravitz shows promise in her directorial debut, but a strong cast can’t make up for an inconsistent tone.
The phrase “Billionaire with a private island” has a particular, not-so-positive connotation, thanks mostly to Jeffrey Epstein's notorious predations.
Between Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery two years ago and now Blink Twice, it’s also become a popular movie plot, while avoiding the worst specifics of the Epstein story.
Blink Twice, actress Zoe Kravitz's directorial debut is built on just that. The film is heavily influenced by Jordan Peele’s Get Out, focusing on misogyny rather than racism. And despite quite a few virtues, including a deep cast and a fine direction, the script isn’t nearly as incendiary or tight as that of Get Out.
The setup is intriguing. Channing Tatum plays Slater King, a tech company mogul who recently suffered some public scandal, implicitly of the #MeToo variety. Whatever disgrace befell him, he continues to operate both a foundation and as a titular private island. (The film does not position Tatum’s character as a direct parody of Elon Musk, Bill Gates, or any other real-life mogul, though it might have hit harder if it had.)
At a gala, Slater meets a pair of roommates (Naomi Ackie and Alia Shawkat), and invites them to his island; Ackie’s character, in particular, has long harbored a crush on the mogul. A whole crew of revelers is there (played by the likes of Christian Slater, Simon Rex, and Haley Joel Osment). Other island denizens include Kyle MacLachlan, Geena Davis, and Hit Man’s Adria Arjona.
Soon, strange and off-kilter things begin to happen.
Kravitz, who co-wrote the script with E.T. Feigenbaum, is the type of actor-turned-director who seems to have learned a great deal from the filmmakers with whom she’s worked, most notably Steven Soderbergh. The film looks great, and the production design of the island is outstanding.
The problem, though, is the inconsistent tone. Blink Twice is one movie that takes time to reveal what’s going on. And while some movies make the ultimate answer either disappointing or completely nonsensical (like the recent Cuckoo did), in Blink Twice, the ultimate answer is absolutely horrific- to the point where it sort of dwarfs the stakes of the seemingly satirical elements that came before.
Naomi Ackie emerges as the protagonist and more than holds her own, while Tatum is believable enough as the cruel business titan; he should play bad guys more often. (Also, I kept hearing his name, “Slater King,” as “Sleater Kinney.”)
Kravitz especially makes fine use of the sort of actors from decades of the past (Christian Slater, Kyle MacLachlan, and Geena Davis especially) who don’t get nearly enough work these days.
Alas, the final twist is one twist too many and isn’t really earned by the movie itself.
In a final note, the film initially had the working title Pussy Island, which was perhaps unsurprisingly changed; what’s more surprising is that the former title isn’t even uttered at any point in the film. Maybe they’ll eventually put out a more daring director’s cut, years from now, under that title.