A survival thriller with a singular concept, Don’t Move makes solid use of its paralyzing plot device. It doesn’t quite reach the intensity or ingenuity its premise might have allowed for, but still delivers sufficient thrills throughout its lean 90 minute runtime.
How horrifying would it be to suddenly lose control of your own body? To slowly become trapped inside yourself, unable to move, unable to speak, unable to escape from danger facing you head on? The movie does a very good job conveying the total helplessness our protagonist experiences after she’s paralyzed by her captor. This is a tense game of cat and mouse, where the mouse can’t just scurry away.
Relatively early on, I thought to myself “how are they going to stretch this premise to feature length without it becoming completely implausible?”. To my pleasant surprise (save for some convenient plot devices and pure luck), they pulled it off. There could’ve been a little more creativity in the situations Iris finds herself in, but the tension is effective enough. I wouldn’t say it kept me on the edge of my seat, but I was always engaged. It certainly helps that the movie runs a cool 90 minutes, so it doesn’t overstay its welcome.
Kelsey Asbille doesn’t get to do much actual acting, with her inability to speak or emote becoming a performance challenge of its own. There’s a lot of acting she needs to do with her eyes, and while she gets the job done, I wish she was able to express a little more. Finn Wittrock embraces his inner psychopath, and I have to say he was pretty convincing. I would’ve liked a little more depth behind his motivations, as they seem like a bit of a stretch, but he’s quite menacing in an unhinged sort of way.
Don’t Move strives for the greatness of films like Revenge or Don’t Breathe, but settles for something a little bit safer and more straightforward instead. It utilizes its concept relatively well, providing solid thrills without overplaying its hand.
3/5
Review by: Benjamin Garrett