By Amy Watkins
What would you do if the soothing coos of your baby monitor turned into a stranger’s chilling demands? Listen Carefully is a mind-bending psychological horror that thrusts you into every parent’s worst nightmare, unravelling a relentless descent into guilt, paranoia, and desperation.
Written and directed by Ryan Barton-Grimley, Listen Carefully follows assistant bank manager Andy (played by Barton-Grimley), who discovers his baby daughter has been kidnapped. Left alone with only a baby monitor broadcasting her cries and a stranger’s voice, Andy is instructed to embezzle money to secure his daughter’s safe return. Wracked with guilt over past indiscretions and tormented by haunting visions, Andy’s desperation leads him into a psychological freefall where his morality and sanity are pushed to their breaking points.
Listen Carefully surprisingly works. It shouldn’t. But it does. Think David Fincher’s tension colliding with Lynchian surrealism and the philosophical mind-bend of The Matrix. Yet, while it’s obvious Barton-Grimley has taken some inspiration from these cinematic giants, Listen Carefully deserves its own praise as an original piece that offers a fresh twist on the psychological subgenre. The film weaves a compelling sense of uncertainty. Throughout, Andy experiences blackouts filled with unsettling visions, leaving us questioning what’s real and what’s not; are these manifestations of his guilt and anxiety, or fragmented memories?
And that’s what makes Listen Carefully a modern masterpiece. The confusion doesn’t overshadow the story. While the narrative can feel hard to follow at times, this disorientation serves a purpose, drawing us deeper into Andy’s paranoia and desperation. The film strikes a delicate balance, keeping us intrigued with its many twists and turns without losing sight of its message and emotional core. And, without giving too much away, its open-ended finale invites multiple interpretations. With the right perspective, however, the film reveals itself as pure genius.
Barton-Grimley delivers a compelling performance as Andy, skilfully conveying the anxiety, anger, and terror of a father pushed to his limits by impossible demands. Combined with his writing and directing talents, Listen Carefully solidifies him as a truly talented force in the industry with the potential to make a lasting impact.
Listen Carefully is a suspenseful rollercoaster that will keep you on edge, constantly guessing what’s real and what’s not. Just when you think you’ve grasped what’s happening, Barten-Grimley shifts the narrative and throws you further into the fog, maintaining an edge-of-your-seat intensity that leaves you questioning everything until the final frame —and perhaps even beyond.
Listen Carefully arrives on streaming from 16 December 2024.
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