200 Degrees

I stuck with it for about an hour but the lead guy was so unlikable that I really didn't care anymore by that point if he roasted alive or not and shut it off. Did he live or die by the end? Who knows, who cares?

All I can say is that if the protagonist had been female, she would have almost immediately been stripped down to her underwear. This guy removes his jacket at the start and then remains fully clothed (socks and shoes included) all the way through. I can't get over the blatant double standards here - and before anyone thinks I'm being overly sensitive, we actually (completely unnecessarily) see tits! Incredible. The guy is in insane heat, gets soaked so is not only absolutely boiling but humid, and keeps all his clothes on. Then we see boobs because...? The woman could have had a bra on and we still would have known she was a prostitute.

I'm so incensed by this aspect of the film alone that I was too distracted by my ire to concentrate properly. Relatively interesting concept ruined by unabashed hypocrisy. Points for the setting as I really hate the heat so it did make me go "oooooooo" quite a few times (of course followed by "what kind of absolute cretin wouldn't take some of those clothes off? Oh yes, one who's not being objectified").

Ryan, (Eric Balfour) plays a man trapped in a steel room with large heat lamps and an intercom to communicate with him. He does not know how he got there or why he is trapped inside.

A voice starts to communicate with him demanding $1,000,000 be transferred into an account and he has two hours to do so. If not, the consequences are dire. This is the general premise of the film. I will not give away any more information to spoil it for potential viewers.

The General concept has been used many times over, and this film, albeit somewhat different, could have been much better. Throughout 90% of the film, the viewer has no idea who is doing this (or why) it is happening to Ryan. However, as much as there is an somewhat interesting twist at the end, if one pays close attention to detail, you can get a pretty good grasp of what is happening.

Another run-of-the-mill kidnap/torture film that attempts to keep you guessing the why's and how's. Balfour is pretty convincing as the victim but by no means is this one of his better performances.

The ending, as mentioned had a somewhat interesting twist but was not very good at all. If fact, it was bad! All to neat and tidy in its wrap-up and quite contrived.

I gave this film a generous "6" rating just because it kept my attention to the films end but don't expect a heart pounding thriller here. If you have 91 minutes to spare, you could do worse things with your time.

Be prepared to spend 90 minutes on the edge of your seat. With excellent production, great casting, and a clever but nerve-wrecking plot, 200 Degrees will have you biting your nails on pins and needles. This thriller is chock full of suspense with twists and turns you will NEVER see coming. Balfour and Cochell give excellent deliveries that will have you anxiously sweating bullets and really feeling the heat.

I'm burnin' through the sky, yeah 200 degrees That's why they call me Mister Fahrenheit I'm travelling at the speed of light I wanna make a supersonic man out of you.