There are people out there that believe Fede Alvarez' remake of "Evil Dead" is better than the original. It's better conceived, that's for sure. More professionally shot, no doubt overall better? Debatable, but definitely not a ludicrous claim. The original 1981 film is a cult classic, but that doesn't mean it's a great movie. Alvarez tried his best to maintain the B-Movie horrors, but expertly direct the whole thing. Good on him.
Alvarez is back with "Don't Breathe" which is already being described as the scariest movie of the year. It's a tightly knit and terrifying treat to watch three thieves trying to break into a blind war veteran's home to steal a cool million dollars in cash. Not only does the plan fail, but it turns out the blind war vet is quite capable of taking care of himself. It makes for a claustrophobic film. 80% of the film takes places in the man's Detroit home. A labyrinthine thriller that reminded of this year's other genre-exercise Jeremy Saulnier's "Green Room" in terms of hard-edged technical prowess.
I wouldn't say that Alvarez' horror film is as masterfully executed as Saulnier's grim B-movie, but damn it if it doesn't come close for almost 2/3 of the movie, more specifically when the film turns to the house invasion. It really turns the screws on the suspense, action and scares. It's quite literally a nirvana for old-school horror movie fans. Don't miss it.