Some reviewers forget the obvious questions most potential viewers have when reading IMDb reviews. Here are my answers to them:
1. If you're looking for suspense versus a bloodbath with jump scares, then 1BR will give you the low-level anxiety fix you're seeking.
2. It doesn't drag. The movie's 90-minute run time passes quickly, and it will competently hold your interest. It's escapist in the best sense of the word.
3. Production values, plot, directing, and acting don't read as cheesy in spite of a modest budget and a lack of big-name talent. It's a great reminder that simplicity often succeeds where CGI and tens of millions of dollars do not.
The performances some describe as "flat" are, to me, understated and depict believable reactions to depression, shock, and brainwashing. One expects the depressed and those tortured into submission to be subdued, not over the top. That said, the acting is merely good, not great.
Complaining about a movie being predictable is like complaining that the outcome of an election is predictable. There is a limited array of possibilities, so predicting correctly doesn't exactly make you a genius.
Is it too predictable? I foresaw 1BR going two or three possible directions, all of which have been done before in one way or another. It did, indeed, travel one of the those paths. That said, in spite of an expected general outcome, the ending does offer an unexpected twist that's fair and supported by the plot.
For those always seeking a higher message, there's one to be had, and this sets 1BR apart from other run-of-the-mill, low-budget thrillers. The filmmakers don't beat the social commentary drum too hard -- it's chancy with a movie like this -- but 1BR does say a little something about the tyrannies of paternalism, forced conformity, and ideology by threat, phenomena we're seeing a little too much of in society these days.
As with any movie, the fun isn't always in the destination. Rather, it's often in the path you take to get there. That's true for most films, and it's true for 1BR. But no one can force you to watch it. At least not yet.
