Review: Breathing Room

Posted by bob in Films, Reviews on September 21st, 2008

You have to admire a movie that tries to sustain suspense on a shoestring budget.

Essentially shot on one set for a mere $20,000, Breathing Room does what the Saws and Hostels of the world fail to do: engage you in the characters.  The premise is a pretty straight-forward one: a naked young girl is tossed into a large, barren room. She’s told she’s the last of 14 prisoners, none of whom can recall how they arrived in this situation.  Each has a number and is told they will be tested and only one will see freedom.

For the next 85 minutes, you’re left to wonder who is behind this and why and which one will survive.  While you’re led to believe the pretty young thing (Alisa Marshall) will be your hero, along the way you’re left to wonder.

There’s some violence, but nothing overt.  It’s all left up to the imagination which is where the best terror tends to be found.

The assorted characters, most of whom have something to hide, are a little too much the same age range but are different enough for you to be left wondering throughout the entire film why them, and which one will be a hero, coward or killer.  The acting varies in quality as does the writing for the characters so there’s an uneven feel to the entire production.

The film, released on DVD from Anchor Bay today, is shot in a less-than-smooth style without leaving you seasick and heightening the tension the spare lighting and set provides. You lose track of the days, as do the characters, and you watch the body count mount and keep wondering why.  The final twist at the end is jarring but not unsatisfying and overall, given its sparseness, does its job quite well.

Breathing Room was written by John Suits and Gabriel Cowan when they were just students at CalArts. It has a refreshing rawness to it and speaks well for their careers which have taken off since this was shot in 2006. That is has earned over $500,000 is the kind of return on investment people notice and it has led to additional work. We can look forward to more from them as a result.