Locked In

For his first feature film, writer-director Gutierrez has pulled it off quite admirably with this thriller featuring some well known actors thrown into a confined scenario which is always a difficult one to pull off but I think he did rather well with what he had to work with. As usual we have the (1 or 10) star reviews which you can virtually ignore in almost every film review section as rarely does a film merit a 10 which is the best movie you have ever seen or a 1 which is the worst movie you have ever seen and this is most certainly a million miles away from a 1 - I suggest these reviewers watch the "Bad Batch" or the recent Mickey Rourke thriller "Adverse" and tell me this film still merits a 1 star review!

Good acting performances from all concerned which is always a good start, basic heist and retrieve the stolen goods story which is staple thriller fair but done with aplomb, a welcome return from Jeff Fahey who pulls of a rather impressive vicious bad guy and Mena Suvari as the heroine who always gives a good performance, make this a lot better than it would have been without them.

Good nights viewing which will not have you reaching for the fast forward button. Solid 6 out of 10.

I could actually rate this movie a 0 if it were possible. DO NOT WATCH.

I love it when reviewers think they are knowledgeable about what makes a good movie, acting, etc. They think you can't be a good critic unless you nit-pic about every little issue and give it a thumbs down. This is not a great movie but it's worth watching. The acting was fine. Those who say it was unbelievable are probably the same ones who have no problem watching cars turn into robots. I have to wonder how many good movies I've missed in the past because I read someone's review who didn't have a clue.

Greetings again from the darkness. The first feature film from writer-director Carlos V Gutierrez is a B-movie thriller with the rare cinematic setting of a self-storage facility. Now you might think corrugated metal doors on rollers and concrete walkways don't add up to an exciting and picturesque filming location, and, well, you'd be right. However, Gutierrez uses the security cameras and maze-like corridors to generate some suspense, and he benefits from a cast that draws out every possible ounce of tension from the script.

Mena Suvari (from Best Picture winner AMERICAN BEAUTY, 1999) stars as Maggie, an employee at the storage facility, and mother to teenage daughter Tarin (Jasper Polish, THE ASTRONAUT FARMER, 2006). Mother and daughter are living in a rundown motel, and are about to be evicted due to non-payment. There is some family baggage here, as the husband/father is in prison, and Maggie is focused on finding religion to get beyond her checkered past. The last thing she needs is a night like she's about to experience.

Bruno Bichir (younger brother of Oscar nominated Demian Bichir) plays Lee, Maggie's boss who expertly plays the nice guy, while being a bit too obvious at keeping his own dark secrets. The film opens with the tail end of a diamond heist by two masked men, one who has an overactive trigger finger. Of course, the two thieves have a tie to Lee, and things go sideways quickly. Maggie and Tarin are trapped in a game of cat-and-mouse, and they don't initially understand why. Multiple bad guys enter the picture, and Maggie leaps into protective-mother mode while dealing with Ross (Manny Perez) and Mel (Jeff Fahey), the masked men from the diamond heist. Fahey is always a fun bad guy to watch, and this time is no exception. Soon, a third party enters the scene - Harris (Costas Mandylor from the "Saw" franchise), creating an even more tangled web of deceit and danger.

The film leans a bit heavy on crying and tough guy posturing, but it also makes clever use of the security cameras, the stark corridors, and even candy wrappers. The movie succeeds at being what it is: a creative low-budget thriller with an entertaining cast.

Funny, I really wanted bad guys to find the diamonds. I cared for them more than for this stupid greedy mother and her daughter.