Don't Breath 2 (2021)

I was trepidatious about seeing Don't Breathe 2, a sequel to a very strong thriller that presented itself inexplicably as an attempt to rehabilitate the villain of the first film by making him a hero. "The Blind Man," as he was known, was a rapist, kidnapper, and killer who menacingly escaped (as horror villains tend to do) at the end of the last film. There was a great deal of potential for a sequel exploring this. Yet the film makers decided they wanted to go another way, a way that just didn't feel honest. 

I kept thinking about how perhaps the film would succeed somehow by either tricking us into presenting him as the villain again (which would have been a stroke of genius) or perhaps give him a real redemption arc. But sadly neither of these turned out to be the case. Instead we got a very subpar sequel that throws out almost all that worked in the first film, copies the most basic elements but not nearly as well, and shamefully excuses a cruel, evil character. 

Sure the film ends with him admitting his crimes and going through the motions of accepting responsibility for them. But the film does no work to actually get him there. He just says his "sorry" and that's supposed to be good enough. In fact the way the film makes its excuses for him is pathetic. He decides not to kill a dog that's attacking him, later even going back to save the canine... so clearly he's not so bad despite raping and forcefully confining people!?! He saves the young girl from (heaven forbid) drug pushers so we are to overlook that he has (1) kidnapped her, (2) forcefully confines her, and (3) downright tortures his sick survivalist games. But hey, he's not as bad as her bio mom and her sick goons so....

But perhaps the worst of it is that the film just isn't that good. None of the great suspense building or tension from the first film carries over. This feels like the bought-it-on-wish version of the film. And it even throws out the concept really. The first film was all about the need to be silent. All that's just forgotten here. It's just another home invasion movie, and not a very well done one. 

There probably was a good idea for a Don't Breathe sequel out there, this just isn't it. In fact, it's a bad idea. 

Don't Breathe 2

Starring: Stephen Lang, Brendan Sexton III, Madelyn Grace

Director: Rodo Sayagues

Writers: Fede Alvarez, Rodo Sayagues