Panic Room

In her first suspense-thriller since her Academy-Award winning turn in "The Silence of the Lambs", Jodie Foster registers quite well as middle-aged New Yorker Meg Altman, who moves into an EXTREMELY spacious brownstone with her daughter Sarah (Kristen Stewart), a diabetic tomboy. The building is equipped with a special shelter designed in the event of a break-in, known as a 'panic room'. Meg and Sarah waste no time in putting the claustrophobic area to use (on their first night, no less) when a trio of burglars (Forest Whitaker, Jared Leto and Dwight Yoakam) make their way into her building to retrieve a large sum of money. The catch is that the burglars' stash is in the very room in which Meg and her daughter are hiding! While 'Panic Room' is not exactly white-knuckle suspense, it definitely has its moments, especially the heart-pounding moment when Meg leaves the panic room to grab her cell phone, and the the tension-building scene when Whitaker and Yoakam enter the panic room when Foster leaves. The only main plot hole is clear in the very beginning: Why would a recently separated woman with one child want to purchase a four-story brownstone? What does she need all of that space for? Besides that, 'Panic Room' is an intelligently written and directed thriller from director David Fincher (Fight Club). The only characters that don't make sense are Meg's friend in the opening scenes and her husband (Ann Magnuson and Patrick Bauchau). They both seem hopelessly unnecessary; otherwise, 'Panic Room' is a first-rate thriller with similarities to several shockers of the early 1990s, 'Unlawful Entry' (1992) being one in particular. Whitaker has to be one of the nicest thieves in recent film history!

I was leery after seeing the first trailer for Panic Room, but as I saw it each time I noticed something I liked about it. First, the story looked okay, but then I realised Forrest Whitaker was in it (usually a great sign!) and then I saw Jared Leto and noticed Dwight Yokam's name in the credits, and I was ready to see it. Then I realized this was the new David Fincher film, and I was HOOKED! I loved Seven, Fight Club, and I even admired Alien3, simply because of Fincher. The movie is fantastic, full of twists, turns and jolts. The performance of Jared Leto was awesome. His character was funny and seemed to hold the action together. Jodie Foster is great, as usual, and Kristen Stewart was very good as the Sarah (although from the trailers, it was hard to tell if it was a boy or girl...)and Dwight and Forrest were great as well. This is the best suspense film in a while, and Fincher once again proves he is at the top of his profession! "Go see Panic Room!"

Panic Room (2002)

There are three reasons to see Panic Room. 1) The titles: understated, gorgeous, uncanny letters floating in the Manhattan cityscape. 2) The photography: camera moving like an animal, slipping between tiny spaces, swinging across rooms and through floors, inhabiting the screen like another character. 3) Forest Whitaker, again (he's so good so often it's hard to not expect a great performance).

The rest of the film is very good, directed with style and intelligence as usual by David Fincher (who did Seven and Fight Club). The plot is good, but maybe a little conventional overall, and if the details aren't completely predictable, the general flow of events is. The whole cast is quite good--Foster in a familiar embattled, determined role, and Jared Leto is an appropriately crazed, if slightly caricatured, bad guy who just wants money. Don't we all.

I saw this when it came out and was dazzled and yet disappointed by the plot. The second time, knowing the events, I was able to just watch how they unfolded, and it was much better. Expect suspense, intensity, and beautiful camera-work.

Director David Fincher lays out a tight simple thriller. It takes place all in and around the house. Meg Altman (Jodie Foster) is recently divorced and buying a house in the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has a panic room. On their first night in the house, they get invaded by three criminals (Forest Whitaker, Dwight Yoakam, Jared Leto) intend on getting something from the previous owner left in the panic room. Only Meg and her daughter Sarah (Kristen Stewart) get there first.

Fincher has striped away all the unnecessary filler from the story. It's a simple cat and mouse game. Nothing could be simpler. Even at almost 2 hours, there isn't a slow moment. All the actors get their fair share. Jodie and Forest lead the cast, but Jared and Kristen also shine. I wouldn't say this was the greatest or the most original. It is simply a good movie.

This claustrophobic suspense thriller sets itself up well with a remarkable, if digitally enhanced, one-shot that neatly and necessarily establishes the geography of the central location, while also planting the seeds for the seedy uses of various tools laying about the house, so that the action that comes later is clean and clear without ever needing to slow down for the sake of audience reorientation. 'Panic Room (2002)' is pretty pacy and nicely gritty to boot, being unusually violent for pictures of the kind but never less tense either. It manages to make a compelling home-invasion seem suitably layered, presenting the bad guys as rounded individuals with differing yet believable motives and personalities. It still feels immediately dangerous, though, never losing sight of its protagonists and the escalating peril they're placed in, until it finally reaches its truly edge-of-your-seat and slightly unexpected finale. 7/10