When tech billionaire Slater King meets cocktail waitress Frida at his fundraising gala, he invites her to join him and his friends on a dream vacation on his private island. As strange things start to happen, Frida questions her reality.

Zoë Kravitz is the latest performer to take a step into the directors chair with her debut feature ‘Blink Twice’ a sharp psychological thriller set primarily on a billionaire’s exclusive island. It follows two waitresses who can’t believe their luck when they receive an invite to a billionaire’s private island for a week of sunshine and partying, only to discover things may not be quite as they seem as they settle into their new surroundings. The cast is led by Naomi Ackie as Frida, one of the waitresses, with Kravitz’s partner Channing Tatum taking on the role of the billionaire tech mogul Slater King, who we suspect may not be quite as charming as he first seems.

Arriving at the island with her friend Jess (Alia Shawkat), Frida and the rest of the guests settle into a pattern of drinking, eating, partying and lounging by the pool, with no one really batting an eyelid at the policy for everyone to hand their phones in upon arrival. It is only as time progresses that Frida starts to become suspicious, both through things she discovers in her room and the revelation that none of the women who have been invited were friends with Slater previously. As you might expect this starts to escalate with a lot of foreboding laid on, and I felt Kravitz used this opportunity to show off her burgeoning directorial skills, helping to build tension and intrigue in the story. I felt the movie was at its best during the initial scene setting as Kravitz builds Slater King’s world and introduces us to the characters, and that setup pays dividends when we get to the violent final act.

Billionaires and the super-rich are a popular target for villains at the moment and Channing Tatum’s Slater King is another entry into the cultural canon alongside Edward Norton’s Miles Bron (‘Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery’) and the various characters in Ruben Östlund’s ‘Triangle of Sadness’. That is to say that ‘Blink Twice’ isn’t going to win many awards for originality, but as a slightly different take on the ‘evil billionaire’ archetype, it certainly entertained me and it marks Kravitz out as someone else who is just as talented behind the camera as in front of it.

Rating: 4/5

Directed By: Zoë Kravitz

Starring: Naomi Ackie, Channing Tatum, Alia Shawkat, Christian Slater, Simon Rex, Adria Arjona, Haley Joel Osment, Geena Davis and Kyle MacLachlan

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt14858658/