Locked gets off to a shaky start, not only because of the camera movement across various locations in the city, but also because of the introduction of its central conflict. Eddie Barish (Bill Skarsgård) is a young man looking for money to fix his van for work. Willing to do whatever it takes to fix it, he gets into a fictional Dolus car, only to find himself trapped inside the luxurious vehicle. A call on the car screen from its owner, William (Anthony Hopkins), explains that he's had trouble with car thieves in the past, and that Eddie is now their unfortunate victim.
This summer will likely be the summer of the gritty thriller. Novocaine has already exceeded box office expectations. Black Bag puts a new spin on the spy thriller genre with two A-list leads and an even more promising director. Now, David Yarovesky's Locked is opening in theaters to much anticipation, and rightly so. It's a true "Highway to Hell," a high-low movie that more than delivers.
Director: David Yarovesky
Writers: Mariano Cohn, Gastón Duprat, Michael Arlen Ross
Stars: Bill Skarsgård, Anthony Hopkins, Ashley Cartwright
Last year, I saw Bill Skarsgård in Boy Kills World and wasn't impressed. I felt like he needed a better film to establish him as one of the rising stars in a turbulent and unpredictable period in the film industry, where nothing makes sense anymore and fluctuations can crush a promising young actor in a minute. Then Nosferatu came out, but it was more of a Lily-Rose Depp-style film than Skarsgård's, and while it received praise, he still needed something worthy of putting his face on screen.
This is where Locked comes in. One of the most enjoyable 95 minutes of my life, a movie made exclusively for the big screen, and if you're a thrill-seeker or a midnight moviegoer like me, then this is the movie to see. This claustrophobic survival thriller is a constant horror adventure, where from the moment our protagonist enters the demonic car—yes, that's what I call it—nothing stops. The action-packed film continues from there, appealing to Skarsgård fans, but also to those looking for an action movie that keeps them glued to their seats, unaware of the passage of time.
Eddie is a down-on-his-luck petty thief, a baby-faced ex-criminal with a familiar past. To pay off a debt, Eddie enters a luxury SUV, believing it's his lucky day, but his labyrinth of pain begins when he hears the chilling voice of the car's owner, who excitedly explains Eddie's terrible situation as a hostage in the car, similar to Death Proof. The fun begins, and it feels like a sophisticated Jigsaw trap between Eddie and William (Anthony Hopkins), and with Skarsgård's star power and Hopkins' chilling performance, things don't get any better. It's as if the rich have a chance to strike back after a series of now-predictable films about the working class rising up to destabilize the social order and consume the rich. Now, the rich have their revenge, and it's hilarious to watch.
Events move quickly without losing Eddie's humanity, with whom the audience gradually grows closer as the harsh circumstances of his incarceration become increasingly emblematic of the sinister nature of William's false moral system. William metes out his punishments like a terrifying biblical figure; his complete disdain for Eddie's vulnerability is unnerving, but as the film progresses, the source of his disturbing moral code becomes more apparent, and it's a fun game of cat and mouse between two wonderful actors.
Locked would never have worked without the brilliant performances of both leads, Skarsgård and veteran Hopkins, who appears primarily as a cold, distant, and psychopathic voice. But the credit goes even more to Skarsgård, who is at his best here, shifting from anxiety, bitterness, and rage to despair. Playing a character outside his comfort zone—which practically doesn't exist at this point—he shows off his handsome face but utilizes the physicality of a failed man, creating an illusion of fractured beauty, a man beaten down by life and its marked cruelty. He's essentially playing himself, a one-man show for the masses, and Bill's girls will have a blast because, even with the blood running down his face and some slightly gory (and disgusting) moments, he looks more appealing than ever.
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