As of writing this review for the Russian language thriller “Break” (“Otryv”), the movie has a 4.3 user rating on IMDb. Do not let its low score keep you from watching it. “Break” is an utterly entertaining worst-case scenario heart-pumper that keeps the thrills and chills coming in steady supply.
Do the characters make bad decisions? Yes, but that is undoubtedly a flaw found in almost every movie in the genre. Even Wes Craven’s crafty thriller, “Red Eye,” had a few off-putting moments in that vein. In the end, it is about how a suspense story sets that sense in motion that matters, and Russia’s “Break” does a better job at it than most.
“Break” begins with five twenty-somethings celebrating New Year’s Eve in Russia. Comprising the group are two couples and a caustic and grating fifth wheel. One of the pairings is heading towards a break-up. Katya (Irina Antonenko) is preparing to end things with her long-time boyfriend, Kirill (Andrey Nazimov).
That process gets sped up when the two disagree about taking a gondola to a mountain top. As a result, Kirill and Katya end up going their separate ways. Kirill heads back to the hotel, while Katya stays with the others. As you probably suspected, it turns out to be a fateful decision.
The group heads off on their mountain-top adventure without Kirill, and they enter a gondola to make it happen. Disaster eventually strikes, and the gondola becomes stuck midair, making for quite a frightening, sensational vision.