Buried (2010)
*** 1/2 (out of 4)
Effective thriller has Paul Conroy (Ryan Reynolds) waking up in pure darkness and soon realizing that his convoy in Iraq was attacked by insurgents and now he is stuck inside a coffin without much time to live. He has a cell phone and a few other odds and ends and this here is really as much as you need to know in terms of story. BURIED is certainly unlike any other film that I can think of. Sure, there have been countless movies about being buried alive as the horror genre is full of such films but none of them actually put you in the coffin for 94-minutes and made you squirm like this thing does. It's interesting that the director and screenwriter decided to have every single second inside the coffin and I think this was a very wise choice. I think an uncomfortable filmmaker would have chickened out and not kept everything inside the coffin. There are several people that Paul calls throughout the movie trying to get help and I think a lot of people would have shown these other people but thankfully that doesn't happen here. I think the film works because as more and more time passes you begin to feel like Paul, as if you're trapped and by keeping you inside the coffin you never really get a chance to catch your breath. Every time Paul goes into shock so do you. Every time another issue comes up you can't help but feel his pain. Every single thing Paul feels in the movie is something the viewer is also feeling so it was very wise to keep everything in this small box. The amazing thing is that you'd think there wasn't too much you could do in such a small space but the screenplay offers up quite a few things that I won't ruin. I don't think anything came across as being faked or forced. The one problem I had with the film is that since we do spend the entire time in the box, it takes a few minutes to really warm up to Paul. Yes, we feel the dangers as soon as the film starts since it begins with him in danger but the suspense really starts after we become to know the guy, have feelings for him and wanting to see him get out of this situation. Reynolds is certainly one of the best actors working in movies today and it's a real shame that so many of his great performances aren't being seen by the masses. His performance here is another winner as he carries the entire film. Being trapped in a tight box without much room to move allows him to use facial gestures as well as other body movements. There's also a lot of work he has to do with his voice. The most impressive thing for me was just watching his eyes as we can see his fear, heartache and pain without him having to say a single word. The 2.35:1 framing allows some terrific shots but it also adds to the claustrophobic nature of the film. As more and more time passes you can't help but feel squeezed in just like the character and I must admit that there were a few times where I was holding my breath for so long that I ended up gasping for air. I won't ruin the final ten-minutes but they're certainly not for the weak hearted.
