It’s the classic example of not wanting to know how the sausage is made. If you sit down and think about it, everything we ingest or put onto our bodies must be tested and undergo rigorous trials before it can reach the stage where the masses can consume it. At least, that’s what you hope will happen. How did that face cream reach the point where the pH balance was correct so your skin wouldn’t react when applied? That new pill you take for your migraines? What determined the dose’s size and noted its potential side effects? For years, animal rights activists have lobbied for cosmetics testing on animals to be banned and for customers to look for cruelty-free products. The public is more aware than ever of the possible hazards at play.

When you hear the term “clinical trials” or “human test subjects,” your mind drifts to what individual would knowingly put themselves at such potential risk. What some people won’t do for a buck nowadays, I tell ya. The subjects who have signed up for a test trial of an experimental drug in the new horror film Double Blind are putting their bodies in potential danger to make quick money. For more than a few, this isn’t their first trip to the pharmaceutical rodeo. This time, newcomer Claire (Millie Brady, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies) has come to Blackwood Pharmaceuticals to escape a troubled home life that has left her homeless. Her time in the facility is more of a temporary respite than anything.

Presided over by Dr. Burke (Pollyanna McIntosh, Tales of Halloween), the seven-member group has agreed to participate in a double-blind study for a new medication that can potentially eliminate the need for sleep. As part of the double-blind process, neither the subjects nor the staff knows who receives the actual medication and who receives a placebo to observe best how the group reacts. Standoffish at first, Claire is coaxed out of her shell by chatty roommate Alison (Abby Fitz, The Cellar) and starts to warm up to others, like medical student Amir (Akshay Kumar, Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi). The rest of the group consists of the standard personalities necessary for the horrors to come; nebbish nerd Ray (Brenock O’ Connor), jock #1 Paul (Diarmuid Noyes), jock #2 Marcus (Frank Blake, Cherry), and Vanessa (Shonagh Marie) the sullen woman with no real allegiances to anyone until it matters.

Dr. Burke observes peculiar lab results and body scans in all seven patients as the dosage increases. After reporting this to her superiors, she’s instructed to proceed as planned. However, when a mysterious incident triggers a lockdown of the isolated facility, the group finds themselves trapped for twenty-four hours without access to more of the drug, precisely when it’s needed the most. Soon enough, members of the group begin to die in horrifying ways, seemingly when they fall asleep. It becomes clear that the drug they’ve been taking to suppress sleep has altered their body chemistry, turning sleep into a deadly threat. Desperate to stay awake, their only focus is escaping their steel-clad prison before it’s too late.

Collaborating on several shorts before making Double Blind, director Ian-Hunt Duffy and screenwriter Darach McGarrigle have made an enjoyably slick thriller that microdoses the horror early on before giving the viewer the whole cocktail of terror in the final act. Working with cinematographer Narayan Van Maele (You Are Not My Mother), there’s an efficient economy to the production that keeps the tension high while still allowing the plot to develop naturally in ways that aren’t short on shock or surprise. Layering in a skin-prickling score from Die Hexen completes Hunt-Duffy’s vision quite nicely. Double Blind routinely overcomes budgetary constraints (the sets feel like they’ve been constructed for utilitarian use at a weekly rate) with a well-honed eye for detail.

The performances are also on the mark, finding Brady a compelling lead. Claire is the heroic heavy from the beginning, harboring troubles that come out in tiny flashes, but McGarrigle doesn’t make her journey wholly cut and dry. There is complexity at play that Brady knows how to work with well, making the character more intriguing to follow during the increasingly panicked incident. Horror favorite McIntosh might have easily played the Claire role a few years back (albeit filtered through her unique approach), but she’s wisely playing the formidable doctor with questionable allegiances. Everyone else understands the assignment, and while at times a tad cookie-cutter by default, they work to create some individualism.

I was surprised at how easy it was to engage with Double Blind – its 90-minute run time flew by, and it delivers goo-filled entertaining glee for body horror lovers. While not the most original or entirely character-driven piece you’re likely to see in the genre, it’s worth watching for the performances and the confidence in filmmaking that signals even stronger work to come. Consider this test trial a success.