Warning: Spoilers for Don’t Move below!The intense new thriller Don’t move is a perfect reminder to watch an acclaimed thriller debuting on Netflix in early 2024. Although Don’t move It seems like a familiar concept on the surface – a resourceful young woman being stalked by a killer in some isolated forest – the main trick behind it is the victim being injected with a paralyzing agent that will cause her body to shut down within 20 minutes. Don’t move received solid reviews, both for its inventive take on the genre and its lead performances.
It doesn’t reinvent the genre by any means, but it wrings a lot of tension from a simple setup and it’s not unwelcome. In a refreshing turn of events, Don’t move the ending doesn’t try to leave the door open for a sequel; Once the killer is defeated, the story ends and Kelsey Asbille’s Iris finds the strength to move on with her life.
After Don’t Move, You Should Watch the 2020 Thriller Alone
Alone, by John Hyams, is the perfect sequel to Don’t Move
For those who liked Don’t move stripped-down premise and emotions, 2020 Alone It should be your next watch. John Hyams wrote and directed Alonewhere Jules Willcox’s Jessica is stalked and captured by a serial killer named Sam (Marc Menchaca). Don’t move It almost feels like a soft remake of Alonewith the two sharing a lot in common. Don’t move cast Finn Wittrock as Richard, who, like Sam, initially comes across as a nice, charming guy who soon reveals himself to be a monster.
Both Alone and Don’t move feature scenes in which the protagonist is almost rescued by a well-intentioned stranger. These sequences also work in basically the same way; the stalker poses as a worried loved one, trying to confuse the would-be savior before going in for the kill. Both thrillers feature scenes in which the protagonist tries to escape by floating down a river and feature a key moment in which they overhear a phone conversation between the killer and their loving families.
The main difference between Don’t Move is that Alone feels like a darker outing.
The heroines of Don’t move and Alone They are also still mourning the loss of a family member. The main difference between the films is that Alone It feels like a darker ride. The violence is not especially graphic and the body count is actually lower Don’t move but the tone is more intense, with Menchaca’s Sam being a truly menacing figure.
Alone was rescued from obscurity with its debut on Netflix
Alone arrived in theaters during the time of COVID
Director John Hyams has a cult following thanks to his Universal Soldier sequelae, but while Alone received fantastic reviews (93% in Rotten tomatoes), practically sank without a trace. The film hit theaters and VOD simultaneously in 2020, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Alone box office was just US$642,000 worldwide (via Mojo Box Office). Strong word of mouth helped it spread among thriller and horror fans, but it wasn’t until it hit Netflix that it gained widespread recognition.
Alone reached 3rd place Netflix Global Rankings during March 2024, defeating rivals such as Ford vs Ferrari and The Super Mario Bros. movie. This is an impressive feat for a low-budget thriller that few have heard of, and it highlighted once again that underrated movies and TV shows can get a second life on streaming. Hopefully, Don’t move success will give Alone another impulse.
Source: Netflix, Rotten tomatoes, Mojo Box Office