The horror film, Don’t Breathe, achieved large success by utilizing unique techniques of sound and lighting. These audio and visual effects force the viewers of the movie to watch through the perspective of the antagonist, Norman Nordstrom, who is a blind army veteran. As the film opens, we are introduced to two characters; Rocky and Alex, who plan to break into Nordstrom’s house and rob him of the settlement money from the accident that took away his sight.

In one particularly chilling scene, our two protagonists are trying to leave the blind man’s house through an old cellar door in the basement. However, the man discovers them and locks the basement from the inside, shoving the key into the lock and snapping off the end, rendering that exit completely useless. Horrified, the two characters attempt to make their way back upstairs, and use the front door to escape, but the lights to the basement are suddenly cut off, leaving the room nothing more than a confusing dark abyss.

Now, sound and lighting, or lack thereof, play an extremely important role in the plot. The story is temporarily portrayed in black and white, representing Rocky and Alex’s eyes straining to see just a glimpse in the blackness. As the camera cuts to their faces, we see their unnerving eyes, pupils completely dilated, appearing as desperate orbs searching the basement for each other, the man, a weapon, anything. Their hands, frantic, but still carefully maneuvering , cling to nearby shelves to hold their balance and get a feel for their location. At this point, the audience can see the setting much better than all of the characters. Nordstrom unknowingly passes by his intruders multiple times, and these moments are so eerily stressful that the viewers are coaxed to sit still and hold their breath, just as the frightened characters do. Occasional fumbles in the unfamiliar area and wary pants are all that can be heard, but even these feel thunderous and deafening in the silent environment. After searching for a few minutes, which feel like numerous horrifying hours, the man stops. He stands completely still, only cocking his head while using his adapted hearing and well-trained ears for finding the intruders. His eyes also wander the room, and while he cannot see, the milky scar tissue covering his piercing blue eyes serve as a terrifying sight for the audience.

Unbeknownst to her, Rocky is reluctantly moving, inch by inch, towards the man standing in the middle of the room. Her arms are fully extended, hoping to find a sign of another way out. As her shaking hands are just about to reach the man, and certain danger, Alex calls out from across the room. The blind man fires a shot towards the pleading whisper without a second thought, and a piercing ring echoes through the space. As the scene had been silent up until this point, the gunshot feels overwhelmingly tumultuous, as resonates within both the characters and the viewers. Rocky clutches her head and sinks to the ground, in definite shock as her head had been right next to the gun as it went off. Still, she overcomes the searing pain in silence, determined to stay hidden.

The simple grayscale filter and amplified noises present the story from a new angle, the blind man’s observations. The feelings of hopelessness and isolation are pushed heavily throughout the film, as the antagonist clearly has the upper hand, despite being unable to even see his attackers.