The Break-In
Justin Doescher’s “The Break-In” is easily comparable to “Paranormal Activity,” but in a lot of ways, it really isn’t. For one thing, there is no paranormal at work here, which is actually a good thing. For another, it leaves us with a twist at the end that is devastating to watch unfold. There are moments when you may very well watch “The Break-In” and think, “been there, done that,” but few found-footage movies have done it quite as well as this one does here.
We start by seeing a couple of people walking around at night. One of them is recording things with their camera. They come across police cars at their friends townhouse, and run to find out what happened. We then cut to two days earlier, and see Jeff (Doescher) and fiancee, Melissa (Maggie Binkley), as they are at home. Jeff is installing security cameras throughout the home, a safety precaution he is taking with Melissa pregnant. Their best friends, Steve (J.P. Veizaga) and Lisa (Melissa Merry), live next door, and Steve proceeds to use the security codes Jeff has given him for emergencies at will. So that night, when Jeff hears sees and hears some strange things going on, he assumes it is just Steve messing around. But when robberies start occurring in the neighborhood, Jeff and Melissa start to get on edge.
At 72 minutes, Doescher’s film is just the right length for a thriller of this sort. More importantly, he gives us all the information we need without making it laborious so that his payoff strikes us right in the gut. All the pieces are in place for an ending that catches us off-guard, and hits us right in the emotional breadbasket. If there’s something I didn’t see coming more than how the film ends, it’s how that ending would make me feel. Rather than just a suspenseful exercise like the “Paranormal Activity” films, “The Break-In” brings us into the lives of these characters, and more importantly, makes us care about them. Jeff isn’t annoying like some male characters we know (see: Micah in “Paranormal”) but an exciting, concerned father-to-be who is trying to be protective of his family. He makes big mistakes in doing that, but he’s doing what he can, and we understand his motivations. That connection with the character makes the endgame that much more painful to witness.
Among the “found-footage” films of the past decade, I would put “The Break-In” near the very top of the boom, if not at the top. Justin Doescher has a good understanding of the formula, but more than that, an important feeling for telling a strong story. It’s not enough that you have quiet “jump moments” in a film like this if you don’t have a payoff that will make you feel the weight of those moments. In this film, the payoff changes our perceptions of everything, and the result is a film that will shake you and make you feel some pretty strong emotions when it ends. It grabs you along the way, but rattles you when you get where it’s going. That’s a lot more satisfying than just getting tricked into supernatural nonsense we see coming a mile away.
