But something is off with Jackie, and she begins to do things without Jules or not bother to check in with her. Jules is the yin to Jackie’s more volatile yang.To celebrate their one-year anniversary, Jules ( Brittany Allen) and Jackie (Hannah Emily Anderson) take a retreat to Jackie’s family’s old lakeside home. She brings a level of raw determination to the character that makes her easy to invest in. See Also: ‘Southbound’ is the Best Horror Anthology of the Past 10-Years īrittany Allen is also rather impressive as Jules. And the way she can turn her disingenuous emotions on and off like a light switch is nothing short of chilling. Seeing a performer mirror the type of subtlety one might expect from an actual violent sociopath makes her that much more menacing. The realization that she isn’t quite right is more nuanced than we often see in film. She isn’t a scenery-chewing villain that stands back and cackles at the chaos she’s caused. Anderson, however, plays Jackie in such a way as to suggest she’s putting on human emotions that don’t quite fit. But that kind of depiction almost always serves to put a damper on the intensity.
So many performers come across as too eager and too exaggerated in their portrayal. It’s not easy to convincingly play a violent sociopath onscreen. Jackie works so well as a villain thanks to a standout performance from Hannah Emily Anderson. But the feelings of fear that accompany such a realization are explored quite effectively throughout What Keeps You Alive. The unraveling happens far quicker here than it might in real life. The idea that this picture is not so far removed from reality makes it even scarier. So, the idea of pledging your life to someone, only to find out they’ve been deceitful is legitimate nightmare fuel. When one enters into a relationship, we trust our partner with our world. So, the suspense doesn’t come from slowly questioning Jackie’s motives more so than the almost immediate realization that Jackie is unhinged. Naturally, Jackie also neglected to share that piece of information with Jules. Shortly after that, we discover that one of Jackie’s childhood friends died under mysterious circumstances. But mere minutes into this picture’s runtime, we learn that Jackie legally changed her name prior to meeting Jules and didn’t bother to mention that during their courtship or even after their nuptials. Relationship thrillers often take the ‘are they or aren’t they?’ approach to revealing a character’s true motives. Setting What Keeps You Alive apart from many films of its ilk is that it doesn’t waste any time letting the audience know Jackie is bad news. Also See: ‘ As Above, So Below’ is A Terrifying and Atmospheric Found Footage Masterpiece What follows is a deadly game of cat and mouse that sees Jules faced with the realization that she barely knows the woman with whom she has pledged to spend her life. When Jules approaches Jackie for answers, Jackie lashes out violently. During their visit, Jules makes some disturbing discoveries in regard to Jackie’s past. What Keeps You Alive sees married couple Jules (Brittany Allen) and Jackie (Hannah Emily Anderson) escaping to Jackie’s parents’ rural estate in the countryside for a celebratory getaway. And that notion is delved into and explored with terrifying results in this unsettling effort from director Colin Minihan. Try as we might, just about everyone has secrets. This week’s selection, What Keeps You Alive, is an unnerving thriller that serves up some terrifying observations about the ways in which we can never truly know another person.
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