I See You - A Deliciously Cruel Thriller
We need to talk about I See You because holy shit you guys, what a sleeper. Go watch this immediately on amazon prime, take my word for it, and then come back and let’s talk about it.
Released in 2019, I See You stars Helen Hunt, Jon Tenney, Judah Lewis, Owen Teague, and Libe Barer. It was directed by Adam Randall and written by Devon Graye.
Okay we’re diving in folks – full spoilers – let’s do this.
Premise:
A family is in the midst of turmoil. Dr. Jackie Harper has recently had an affair with a man she knew from high school called Todd. Her husband, Greg, is aware and the two are taking small steps to move forward. Their son Connor is livid and angry and confused at the entire situation. Meanwhile, in the town they live in, two young boys have gone missing. Greg is a detective and his partner, Officer Spitzky, is worried that this might be a copycat of an old case; Cole Gordan, “six kids, six knives”. His calling card is leaving behind a green knife. Spitzky arrested him after two young boys escaped his clutches back in the day.
On this particular week, strange things are happening in the Harper household. All the silverware goes missing, the stereo and TV are turning on by themselves, there’s muffled voices coming from the spare bedroom. Greg sees Connor’s hamster running around out of his cage and tries to catch him, he ends up in Connor’s closet only to find the door locked behind him. On the day this is all centered around, Greg wakes up in the guestroom thinking he’s pissed himself in his sleep, he throws the blankets in the laundry and heads off to work. Meanwhile, Todd shows up unannounced and is begging Jackie to take him back. But suddenly, a coffee mug falls out of the window above him and knocks him upside the head.
Jackie rushes him into the basement, thinking Connor had been the one to throw the mug out of anger, and leaves him there as she takes Connor to school. When she returns, she finds Todd dead in her basement. She believes that he died from the head injury that Connor did so she doesn’t call 911. When Greg returns home, he takes the body and him and Jackie bury his body out in the woods. When they return, they find Connor almost dead in the bathtub.
That’s a lot, right? But this movie is A LOT.
And here’s where the story twists in the most incredible and unforeseen way.
There are phroggers living in their house. Phrogging? Well, let me know tell you about this horrifying and real trend that will make you scared to live in a house ever again. Commonly done by homeless teens, they will break into your house and live there for a week or so without you knowing. They sleep in attics or rooms that are easy to hide in. They eat your food, they bathe in your shower, they move around your house at night and when you’re out. Then they leave and go to another house. Aka jumping pad to pad like frogs.
So, the twist here is, there’s two homeless teens living in their house. And all of those strange circumstances are by the phroggers moving around their home.
“It’s better than subways and park benches.”
And if that’s not twisty enough?
Turns out Greg is the kid killer. It’s always been him. Spitzky arrested the wrong guy. He also killed Todd.
Want one more twist?
One of the two homeless teens that’s been hiding in his house is one of the boys that escaped Greg when he was young.
WHAAAAAATTTTT
“Did he do that to your face?” “No, I did it to myself.”
Okay, here’s what I love:
This movie is so fucking unnerving. From the get go it attacks you with this loud, jarring score and these starkly beautiful shots. You’re confused from the first second until about half way through the movie. But as things slowly slide into place and you start to see the bigger picture, it is the MOST satisfying watch. It’s so damn complex, and every single little thing is explained. You won’t find plot holes here. It’s a delicious mystery and it’s on par I think with the flick Prisoners.
The serial killer story! You might think there’s a lot going on this movie, but when you’re watching it, it doesn’t feel like it. The underlying serial killer story that goes on throughout the flick stays with you. While Jackie is begging her husband to give her another chance, or Connor is playing video games, or Greg is drinking every night….below the surface is the threat of these missing boys. And when you find out Greg is the killer, it genuinely blows your mind. And all these little things that were scattered around the story make sense. My favorite being; Spitzky and Greg go visit one of the boys who survived the past killings (the other boy is living in Greg’s house secretly). When they arrive, Tommy is covered in burns and he turns around to see Spitzky and Greg and immediately loses it. At the time you’re like, wow, this poor guy is having a mental break. But when you realize Greg is the killer it becomes so much more menacing. Tommy turns around to see his captor standing there and is incapable of handling it.
The acting is pretty spot on too. Sure, Connor is fucking annoying. But he’s an angry, privileged, white teenager. It was never meant to be for us. But he plays that character well. Helen Hunt wanders through the scenes with a haunted look on her face, you can see the guilt and panic there. And Greg – when you see who he really is, it’s pretty terrifying. He’s never over the top – he’s quiet, calm, and fucking deadly. And Alec, our homeless teen/past victim of Greg living in his house, is phenomenal. This was the only twist I saw coming – when I realized Greg was the killer, I immediately realized Alec was the survivor out for revenge. But that’s not revealed until the last 5 minutes. But his acting is amazing. He never says much, but his face speaks loudly, especially in those last 5 minutes as he lays almost dead on a stretcher. Chilling.
“I know you took those boys.”
I love this movie. I love this shit so hard. A deliciously cruel thriller that you can chew on for hours after. Highly recommended.
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