 | Genre: Thriller |
Spoilers ahead, as a lot of these things are near and even right at the end of the film. The fact that the hostage rescuer tells him the name of a real person he didn't save as his example of a person he saved makes no sense. Why tell him that name, not a fake one? Yes, it reveals the lie, but it doesn't make sense. Likewise, the fact that the kidnapper insists that the buried man is not who he says he is makes no sense because it's not explored. By leaving it at that, we get the sense not that there is, indeed, more to the story, but that the kidnapper has him wrong. Again, why? His job representative calls him to fire him for a relationship with a coworker that he says he is just friends with, but nothing else is mentioned of their relationship. A sense that there is more to the story is there, but because of the one-tiny-space, one-character-shown premise, we can't access it at all. It doesn't make us curious, it just... leaves us confused.
The lack of detail or resolution in the storyline does feel cruel to criticise, however, as it really does stick to the premise. It really is just one man in a coffin for an hour and a half. Watching through, I was waiting for flashbacks or his rescue. I expected the film to crack under the pressure of such a tight visual concept, but it didn't. The film ends with him in the coffin still, with a rescue moment only showing bright light. It really is an impressive achievement.
The opening shot is truly amazing, as well. The film starts in completely black near silence and just as the sheer vastness of potential empty space gets too much to bear, a flicker of light brings up a close up face. The potential empty space is replaced by too little to even move in, and we start in confusion with the main character, waking up in media res. In terms of cinematography, we stay at this level the whole way through the film.
It's just a shame that the plot just doesn't reach the same impact the visuals do. With the character and setting scaled down this far, the story and development need to support it. They don't. The ending is a nearly fantastic reveal of failure, let down by the fake-real-name 'twist', but it's not enough to stop me, at the very least, from watching the closing credits with disappointment. It's not a bad film but it's not that good a film either.
The lack of detail or resolution in the storyline does feel cruel to criticise, however, as it really does stick to the premise. It really is just one man in a coffin for an hour and a half. Watching through, I was waiting for flashbacks or his rescue. I expected the film to crack under the pressure of such a tight visual concept, but it didn't. The film ends with him in the coffin still, with a rescue moment only showing bright light. It really is an impressive achievement.
The opening shot is truly amazing, as well. The film starts in completely black near silence and just as the sheer vastness of potential empty space gets too much to bear, a flicker of light brings up a close up face. The potential empty space is replaced by too little to even move in, and we start in confusion with the main character, waking up in media res. In terms of cinematography, we stay at this level the whole way through the film.
It's just a shame that the plot just doesn't reach the same impact the visuals do. With the character and setting scaled down this far, the story and development need to support it. They don't. The ending is a nearly fantastic reveal of failure, let down by the fake-real-name 'twist', but it's not enough to stop me, at the very least, from watching the closing credits with disappointment. It's not a bad film but it's not that good a film either.
