THE STORY – When Eddie breaks into a luxury SUV, he steps into a deadly trap set by a self-proclaimed vigilante who delivers his own brand of twisted justice. Trapped inside the car, Eddie soon discovers escape is an illusion and survival is a nightmare.
THE CAST – Bill Skarsgård, Anthony Hopkins & Ashley Cartwright
THE TEAM – David Yarovesky (Director) & Michael Arlen Ross (Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 95 Minutes
At the start of “Locked,” things aren’t looking too good for Eddie Barrish (played by Bill Skarsgård) at this phase of his life. Eddie’s part-time delivery driving gig is sidelined as his truck has broken down, he’s struggling to step up in his young daughter’s life, and most of all, he has no money in his pocket. Turning to a life of petty crime, Eddie soon finds himself with a golden ticket, an abandoned luxury car unlocked in a mostly empty parking lot waiting to be carjacked. What seems like an easy score turns into his worst nightmare as Eddie is trapped in what appears to be a heavily altered SUV. As Eddie frantically attempts to escape this torture chamber of a vehicle, the mysterious voice of William (played by Anthony Hopkins) constantly chimes in, hoping to use this predicament as an example of what justice should be. Eddie undergoes the trial of his life as he fights to stay alive in this vehicle while William remotely inflicts various forms of punishment on him. In all honestly, the opening moments of “Locked” only instills worry as the jarringly edited montage that starts off the film sets up an awkward introduction to what is assumed to be a 90s-coded straight-to-DVD thriller. Surprisingly though, like the mystery car at the center of the story, filmmaker David Yarovesky has a little more under the hood than one would expect.
“Locked” finds its footing rather quickly. Once Skargsgård enters Hopkins’s death trap, it’s only full steam ahead from there. Even Yarovesky’s direction, which seems to have a more juvenile flair early on, opts for the occasionally elaborate set piece filled with flashy camera trickery. Yarovesky is also smart enough to never over-extend the premise or drag the film past its natural expiration point, as he’s able to slightly amplify what’s given to him within Michael Arlen Ross’s screenplay. The script, an American adaptation of an Argentinian thriller with the same premise, is serviceable overall. It works best when it’s primarily focused on a battle of the varying personalities between Eddie and William. The two constantly bicker with one another, leading to a slew of comedically satisfying moments that help intersperse the various ways in which audiences watch Eddie suffer. They’re two people from two entirely different worlds, and this is shown in the ways they interact with each other. Once Ross begins to delve deeper into these moral quandaries that have put these characters into the positions they are in, the overtly surface-level social commentary becomes as laughable as the quips Hopkins is dishing out throughout the film. If anything, this issue with the writing reflects more poorly on the characterization of William, making him more of a cartoonish antagonist with extreme views on what homelessness brings into society, essentially making him Gavin Newsom on steroids.
Even without being covered in pounds of prosthetics, Skarsgård can still deliver a more than committed performance that goes far above and beyond the material given to him. His dedication helps create a character that makes it so easy for the audience to root for. Eddie is not radically different from other archetypes we have seen before, given he’s a street-savvy criminal who’s just trying to do the right thing. Skarsgård’s ability to instill a sense of humanity into Eddie makes all the difference for what Yarovesky is aiming for. Out of all of his non-makeup dependant roles, this may be the best work Skarsgård has done yet. It also helps that his rapport with Hopkins is what helps keep “Locked” from becoming stale. Hopkins’s performance is the one that really catches you off guard. Not to say the iconic Academy Award-winning actor usually phones it in (no pun intended), but if the project he’s working on isn’t of some caliber of prestige, it’s likely a coin toss of what we’ll get from his work. Hopkins’s comedic timing is nothing short of excellent though, fueling these more-than-spirited exchanges which make the film feel like it has more to offer than what it really does.
If you’re looking to be entertained, then Yarovesky mostly succeeds with “Locked.” Although his previous films haven’t elicited a ton of confidence, this is easily his most digestible work, which isn’t saying much. At the very least, this feels far more rounded overall as a project compared to something like “Brightburn.” Yarovesky takes this simple premise and infuses enough energy into it that it’s easy to overlook all of its shortcomings. It helps when its brisk ninety-five-minute runtime never allows viewers to lose interest, even when the shine begins to wear off.
