I am very forgiving of a film that tells a rather simple plot so long as the complexities lie in the design of the script, acting, set, location, cinematography, etc. For example, in a situation where no one can pick a movie to watch, I recommend Wes Craven’s Red Eye first and foremost for the simplicity yet effective and thrilling storyline that comes at a very modest 80-something minutes. That’s why movies like The Shallows and Don’t Breathe worked rather well on me this summer, because they’re straightforward, entertaining, and short. They’re silly but tense, I jumped when I was supposed to, I laughed when I was supposed to (give or take ridiculous shark antics or Dylan Minnette’s dumb face). The other side of that, the kind of thrillers that would be described as “slow-burning”, are ones that I’ve found myself having more trouble with in recent years.

There’s a movie on Netflix right now called The Invitiation, a film that has been received favorably among fans and critics due to its suspenseful nature and creepy premise. The basis of the movie revolves around the psychotic downward spiral of a simple dinner party, mostly told through the perspective of our protagonist as he comes to terms with a tragedy he and his ex-wife (the hostess of the party) endured several years prior. With this in mind, I wasn’t expecting the kind of silly assets that make a film like the ones mentioned above move quicker, this film and the kind of it’s ilk are going to take their time to get to the resolution. Unfortunately, I’ve found that without any distraction, be it an action piece or campy qualities, that means I find myself merely biding my time while I wait for the assumptions I’ve made to come to fruition.

First and foremost, that is a dumb way to watch a movie. To sit there and wait for your predictions to happen or not steals any atmosphere or story that the film is offering, but it’s harder to ignore when the film steadily relies on quietness and developing tension. As far as The Invitiation goes, once the central idea is introduced into the movie, there is nothing else to expect as far as the plot goes. What you assume is going to happen, happens. But to say that that’s the purpose of the story would be unfair, as the emotional arc of the protagonist is the real reason to watch the movie. His motivations and paranoia are what drives the inertia of the plot, which is almost harmed by how unimpressionable the other characters are. It makes the final sequence of the movie somehow the least interesting part of the movie*.

That being said, what is it about these kind of movies that people find rewarding where I find them rather underwhelming? I’ve talked at length in other pieces how similarly slow-burning thrillers such as Ex–Machina suffer from what I describe as “De-evolution into Classic Film Narrative”, which is essentially a dissatisfaction with third act resolutions. The Invitation doesn’t so much as devolve into a generic third act as so much exactly takes you there from act one. But that’s not the point. What we’re going to gain out of these kind of films are the discussions of what they’re about: Invitation is steeped in examining grief and depression, Ex-Machina is about intellectual control and existentialism, The Gift** is about two guys having pissing contest and victimizing women, etc. The final moments of these films are suppose to be the final bullet point on their thematic statements essentially, which is hard to grapple when you can already see where the film is heading.

How this differs from a big tentpole film is mostly the takeaway from those themes, the atmosphere, and the characters. Okay, we’ll forgo the plot for the most part since these are essentially more character pieces than anything else. The problem is that third act contrivances means to have something happen after building so much tension which really relies on your investment in the characters. The inevitability of these characters’ fates becomes less interesting when you’re assuming what will happen to them from the start, making their arcs a bit tedious and underwhelming. The protagonist of The Invitation has a rather tumulus go throughout the film and his resolution is the only thing worth caring about by the end. That isn’t a complete dismissal of the entire film, I feel I would like it more on a rewatch, but the dynamics of characters are what drive these kind of movies. But to represent us with potential routes for their narrative arcs to take, only to have them digress into predictable endings, it makes it not worth engaging in further.

On the other other hand; The Neon Demon doesn’t do this and keeps its characters in the abstract which allows for the themes and design to take center stage and allow for some real batshit depravity to happen, which makes it a highly entertaining film. It’s not for everyone, I understand why people would be offended, but I appreciate the hell out of it for trying something weird and just going for it. The point is, the slow burning has to have either an aesthetic/thematic payoff or a character payoff, and in this writer’s opinion, most movies that try this fumble a bit with that ending.

*That final shot didn’t do anything for me, the movie had been rightfully playing things pretty straight up until then and it kind of felt out of place.

**None of these other movies have managed to anger me as much as The Gift did with it’s finale. It’s gross. It’s just a gross ending.