Low-budget indie movies usually fall into one of two buckets. They’re either painfully slow "art" films or they’re cheap slashers that rely on jump scares to hide a lack of talent. Give Me Your Eyes is different. Honestly, it’s the kind of movie that feels like it shouldn't work as well as it does. Released back in 2021 and directed by Gary Entin, this film leans into a concept that feels eerily relevant in our hyper-connected, camera-obsessed world. It’s a tech-thriller that actually understands technology, which is a rare feat in Hollywood.
The plot isn't your standard "masked killer" fare.
Instead, we follow an agoraphobic young woman named Jina, played with a frantic, nervous energy by Elyse Dufour. She lives her life through screens, specifically an app that allows her to act as "eyes" for people who need assistance. It’s a bit like those real-world apps where volunteers help the visually impaired navigate their surroundings. But, because this is a thriller, things go sideways fast. She receives a call from a man who is being pursued by a pair of relentless, highly skilled killers. Suddenly, she’s not just helping someone find their keys; she’s navigating a man through a literal death trap from the safety of her couch.
The Reality of Remote Terror in Give Me Your Eyes
Most people think of the movie as a "contained" thriller, but it's really about the psychological toll of being a witness. Gary Entin and his brother Michael Entin, who produced the film, have a knack for taking high-concept ideas and stripping them down to their barest, most uncomfortable essentials. They don't have the $100 million budget of a Marvel movie. They don't need it.
The tension in Give Me Your Eyes comes from the delay. The lag. The grainy resolution of a smartphone camera.
- It’s the silence between a command and an action.
- It is the feeling of being totally responsible for someone’s life while being physically unable to touch them.
We've all felt that weird anxiety when a Zoom call freezes or a video stream buffers at the worst possible moment. The film weaponizes that common modern frustration. When Jina tells the caller to "turn left now," and the feed glitches for a microsecond, your heart drops. It’s a smart way to build stakes without needing massive explosions.
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Why the Tech Narrative Actually Works
A lot of films get technology wrong. They show "hacking" as a bunch of neon green code scrolling across a screen while a guy in a hoodie types 400 words per minute. Give Me Your Eyes stays grounded. The interface looks like something you’d actually download from the App Store. It’s clean, it’s utilitarian, and it’s fragile.
There's a specific scene where the connection starts to dip as the protagonist moves into a parking garage. Anyone who has ever lost a call in a concrete basement will feel the visceral panic there. The film suggests that our total reliance on these devices has made us vulnerable in ways we haven't fully processed yet. If the battery dies, the person on the other end dies. That’s a heavy burden for a character who is already struggling with her own mental health and isolation.
Breaking Down the Performances
Elyse Dufour carries a massive amount of the emotional weight. Since she’s often the only person on screen for long stretches, the movie lives or dies by her reactions. She isn't playing a hero. She’s playing someone who is terrified but feels an obsessive need to see things through to the end.
Then you have the antagonists. They aren't monsters. They are professionals. This makes them much scarier. In many ways, the film mirrors the "cat and mouse" dynamics of classics like Wait Until Dark, but updated for the Gen Z era. The killers are played with a cold, almost corporate efficiency that contrasts sharply with Jina’s spiraling panic.
Technical Execution on a Shoestring
If you look at the cinematography, you’ll notice how tight the shots are. This was a deliberate choice. By keeping the camera close to Jina’s face, the directors force the audience to feel her agoraphobia. You feel trapped in that apartment with her. When the film finally cuts to the perspective of the phone camera, the shift in frame rate and quality makes the violence feel more "snuff-like" and immediate. It’s a clever trick.
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Budgetary constraints often lead to better filmmaking. When you can't afford a car chase, you have to make a conversation in a hallway feel like a car chase. The Entins managed to make the act of watching a screen feel more kinetic than most high-speed pursuits.
Critical Reception and the Indie Struggle
Let’s be real: Give Me Your Eyes didn't break the box office. It’s an indie film that found its home on streaming services and digital rentals. Critics generally praised its pacing while noting that the third act takes some big swings that might not land for everyone. Some found the ending a bit abrupt. I’d argue the abruptness is the point. In a world of 24-hour news cycles and endless scrolling, trauma often doesn't have a neat "ending." It just stops, and you're left staring at a black screen.
Is it a perfect movie? No. Some of the dialogue feels a bit scripted for a "natural" thriller. But the core tension—that feeling of being a helpless voyeur—is executed perfectly.
The Psychological Impact of Voyeurism
There is a deeper layer here about why we watch things. We live in a culture of "true crime" and "bodycam footage." We are used to seeing the worst moments of people's lives through a lens. Give Me Your Eyes forces the viewer to acknowledge that they are doing exactly what Jina is doing: watching a stranger struggle for their life for the sake of "content."
It’s meta without being annoying about it.
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It asks a very uncomfortable question. Would you stay on the line? If you knew that hanging up meant someone would die, but staying on meant you had to watch the life leave their eyes, what would you do? Most of us like to think we’d be the hero. The film suggests that being the hero is a lot messier and more traumatizing than the movies usually show.
How to Watch and What to Look For
If you’re going to sit down with this film, do it in the dark. Put your phone away. The irony of watching a movie about a phone while being distracted by your own phone shouldn't be lost on you. Pay attention to the sound design. The Foley work—the scraping of shoes on gravel, the muffled breathing, the hum of the apartment's air conditioner—is what actually builds the atmosphere.
You can usually find it on platforms like Amazon Prime, Vudu, or Apple TV. It’s the kind of "Friday night" movie that makes you double-check that your front door is locked.
Practical Takeaways for Thriller Fans
- Watch for the "Long Take" segments. The filmmakers use extended shots to simulate the real-time nature of a video call. This builds a sense of dread that jump cuts would ruin.
- Analyze the color palette. Notice how Jina’s apartment is bathed in warm, safe tones, while the "outside" world seen through the phone is cold, blue, and harsh. It’s a visual representation of her agoraphobia.
- Don't expect a typical slasher. This is a suspense piece. If you want high body counts every five minutes, look elsewhere. This is about the possibility of violence.
The film is a masterclass in using limited resources to create maximum impact. It doesn't need a sprawling cast or a globe-trotting plot. It just needs a phone, a scared woman, and the terrifying realization that someone is watching back.
To get the most out of your viewing experience, approach Give Me Your Eyes as a character study disguised as a thriller. Focus on the transformation of Jina from a passive observer of life to an active participant in a life-or-death struggle. Once the credits roll, you'll likely find yourself looking at your own smartphone a little differently, wondering exactly who might be on the other side of the lens if the wrong app ever went live. This is indie filmmaking at its most efficient—sharp, mean, and incredibly tense.