Locked In

To start with IMDB need to adjust their synopsis of this movie, no way is it an horror movie, this was the only reason I watched it.

It's a mystery and thriller and that's about it.

I am going to give this Netflix movie a five star rating, while I did enjoy it, this movie had some real plot holes and some slap in the face scenes which could have been filmed better and tighter to make to movie more nerve racking.

The twists and turns more or less were done properly and left you guessing most of the way through, I also liked the way the film went back and forth from now and the past.

What I thought was a bit silly and could have been done better were scenes like the horse chase scene, some of the back and forth scenes near the end went on for to long.

I also have seen reviews in which some people wanted a better finish to the film, which I get.

This film also went from the doctor is the bad guy, no he's not, the young girl is. Sometimes this was done well, then sometimes you thought get on with it.

A mixed bag but I did enjoy it, would I watch it again, no I wouldn't, would I recommend it, no I don't think so.

Worth a watch.

Nurse Nicky Mackenzie (Anna Friel) gets a new patient, Katherine (Famke Janssen) who is unable to communicate due to her injuries. She starts talking to Katherine's visitor Lina (Rose Williams). 13 years earlier after the death of Lina's mother, Katherine had become her guardian. At the time, Katherine was a rich and famous Hollywood actress. Her son Jamie suffers from periodic seizures. 3 years earlier, Lina is marrying Jamie (Finn Cole). Dr. Robert Lawrence (Alex Hassell) is treating Jamie.

This feels more like an old timey soapy romance melodrama mystery. I like all these actors. I am slightly intrigued with their characters. I would change one thing for sure. Nicky Mackenzie should be a cop investigating Katherine's incident. As a nurse, she adds no tension to the story. As a cop, she could uncover some sort of foul play and the audience would be more invested in the mystery.

Former actress and Hollywood star Katherine wakes from a coma, but is unable to communicate, helped by Nurse Nicky Mackenzie, who tries to unlock the causes of her injury, only her daughter in law seems to have the answers.

Once again, it's curse of number one on Netflix, a movie that on paper should have been very good, but ultimately disappoints.

It's like one of those plush, but dodgy 1980's afternoon movies, if only Katherine had been given a Range Rover, Golden retrievers, a perm, spritz of Fidji, and a box of Terry's All Gold.

A tale of hidden passions, vengeance, loathing and dark secrets, it's hard to care for a single one of them, they're all awful people.

I didn't care for the storyline, or the over the top music, it all jars, it's so clunky.

Famke Janssen does a good job as Katherine, she plays the Lady or The Manor very well, but ultimately she is wasted, she's better than this.

What I want to know, why is this number one, who's actually watching this and enjoying it?

Poor, 5/10.

Movie starts slow and takes its time to set out background and character relationships. Expect to be less engaged until the midway point. From there, the movie picks up its pace and the viewer can expect to question what's going on until the end of the film. Who is the victim? Who put this woman in the hospital? Is the woman in the hospital not as helpless as she seems? What is up with Lina? Well this nurse is about to find it all out, so pay attention.

I'm landing on a 6 for this one because it's good and keeps you guessing. A 7 and above needs to be excellent++ and this one falls short just slightly but still worth the watch.

Locked In is generically a modern Gothic story. British, manor, orphans, illness, love affairs, duplicitous characters, plots within plots, etc. All of that, the movie does well.

Do we need another Gothic mystery of orphaned child becoming entwined with a decaying family and its manor? Probably not. Do the actors move past the 2 dimensional nature of their characters? Decidedly no. Does the story line bring anything new or ingenious to the story? A resounding no.

Part of the issue I see is that the main character is the young orphaned girl and her movement into this family and the machinations of the plot. She's not that interesting of a character. And the narrow focus that the film takes toward her shuts out the other characters from being able to provide much richness to the story.

This harkens to the great movie and story of Rebbeca in many ways. But that film allowed other characters room to play, and the uncertainty of motivations and conniving increased the sense of tension and dread. As a copy or comparison of that, this films decidedly missed the mark. As a display of a Gothic story, it does all right.