Trunk: Locked In

Medical student Malina (Sina MARTENS) finds herself trapped in the trunk of a car. She and her boyfriend (Artyom GILZ), with whom she was traveling around the world, were overwhelmed at a rest stop. Malina can make herself noticed with a cell phone, but that only helps to a limited extent. Finally, there are still some unpleasant surprises waiting for the young woman...

The AMAZON MGM STUDIOS made a remarkable German shocker by Wuppertal director Marc SCHIESSER possible. The German actress Sina MARTENS, who was just seen in the Berlinale competition entry IN LIEBE, EURE HILDE / IN LOVE, YOUR HILDE by Andreas DRESEN, delivers a magnificent performance in a very small space. Artjom GILZ, who has been known since the series MILK AND HONEY on the German private television channel VOX in 2018, plays her smart friend Enno. Luise HELM, Scarlett JOHANSSON's voice actress, can be heard as the voice of policewoman Elisa.

The story is a bit reminiscent of the Spanish shocker BURIED (2010) with Ryan REYNOLDS, but is independent enough not to be boring. The camera work, the wealth of ideas and the great motorway scenes from the Ruhr area, where the German hit series ALARM FÜR COBRA 11 is filmed, are particularly convincing.

Good genre films can also be made in German-speaking countries. Financially, however, you need the funds of the global streaming giants.

It's also very nice that a popular classic like ICH BIN WIE DU / I AM LIKE YOU by the German pop singer Marianne ROSENBERG is given a completely new honor.

Recommended!

This was the first film to check off Day 3 at Nightmares Film Festival. We got to see this for its United States premiere. Knowing that, I glanced to see that this is a German film. The bit of information that was provided during the introduction had me curious to see how they would use it to tell this story.

For this, we are following Malina (Sina Martens). She is inside of a trunk. It starts when the driver is stopped. I don't believe we get her captor's name, but he is creepy. Malina has her cellphone. She uses it to send messages to sister, father and her boyfriend, Enno (Artjom Gilz). She is also able to get through to the police and works with Elisa Kühne (Luise Helm). She has limited information, but Malina won't give up. It is a fight for survival that goes to places she never expected.

When they said that this takes place mostly in a trunk. This reminded me of The Call with Halle Berry and Abigail Breslin. Instead of seeing this from the side of the 911 operator, we solely with Malina. I need to pull in cinematography here as it is magic. They can capture that claustrophobic feel of being locked inside like she is, but also create enough room to see her do different things. It is one of those movies where one piece of information leads to the next. We know that Malina has a medical degree. She doesn't panic when she can't feel her legs and can also patch herself up as she has injuries.

Now it does feel a bit convenient that she has her cellphone. I would think that everyone would check for that first. I will give a bit of leeway here as it does seem like it was a rush to get her into the trunk before anyone sees. She is also supposed to be knocked out and it is a lucky thing that Malina woke up when she did. These were things that I thought about when watching this.

I'll also say that the rest of the filmmaking was good. There is CGI here, but I'm not sure how else you would do these things. The acting around Martens was good. She carries this and for good reason. Gilz, Helm, Charles Rettinghaus and Janina Sachau also deserve credit. I would bet that this was also made during pandemic with how small a cast we have, but that doesn't hinder this in the slightest. I rather enjoyed this and it is one of my favorites from the film festival. It raised my anxiety and the tension with how believable something like this happening. How she discovers and relays information was believable as well. Something I didn't bring up was the limited battery that she has and that is rapidly being used.

I'd recommend giving this a watch if you come across it. I will say that this was subtitled. There is a bit of English used, but it is mostly in German from what I remember.

My Rating: 8 out of 10.

"Trunk" is a rare true genre film from Germany. A thriller that absolutely captivated me from the first minute to the last. Really everything in this film was on point! The main actress captivated me incredibly. Her acting great! The script was written smart, exciting and emotionally.

The camera work in this small setting of a trunk completely blew me away. You would think there are only few options for creating different shots and angles in this setting. But the filmmakers came up with a visual mastery where no shot seems like the same! Creative and great atmosphere. Magnificent lighting. Sometimes I asked myself: How did they do that?

The sound and music are also absolutely great. All in all, the result is a super well-rounded, ultra-exciting, consistently nerve-wracking film that you won't think is from Germany

The rest of the cast also does a damn good job, especially considering the setting of the film. Very good directing work by Marc Schießer. And also great work from the entire film team!

Great recommendation for thriller friends!

Not a long film, but one that feels like it lasts forever. Logically, difficult terrain: cramped scenario, minimal setting, essentially one-person acting. Only in terms of realism does the script reach into all possible realms to fill the time.

Malina: not a character you warm to, but nothing to criticise in terms of acting.

The driver: an unrealistic, self-important weirdo. No, not a psychopath, a weirdo!

Probably more a film for the cinema, not because of the big screen, but because any distraction at home is probably welcome, and therefore deadly in terms of attention.

After all, it's a German genre film, naturally for this reason without the involvement of German compulsory levies. Nevertheless, neither the setting in general nor the realisation here in particular is my playground.

"Trunk" throws you head over heals into this claustrophobic setting - somehow an irrational fear I never knew I had. I did not have any moment where I was thrown off by something unlogical or too stupid by the main character - and that says a lot for the usual German film already. Sina Martens carries a huge portion of this movie, and she portrays all these intense emotions and these seamless changes of moods brilliantly! I never doubted her fear, nor her will to survive for one second. Production design and photography-wise the crew managed to turn every inch and angle of this vehicle's trunk into a cinematic image. Light settings and visual language changes subtly and always motivated, but makes every minute seem like a different scene. I was stunned by the variety of visuals they managed to show. The overall story arch is full of surprises and intelligently written bits and pieces, I enjoyed, while rooting for Malinas survival.

All in all I find the movie to be a great example of what German filmmakers have to offer. What a thrilling ride! -literally. I am looking forward to more material from this caliber!