Film Review: 'Buried'

Filmmakers are always trying to think outside the box, and sometimes that means forcing people inside of one. From Dante’s ‘Inferno’ to Wes Craven’s ‘The Serpent and the Rainbow’ directors have enjoyed burying their actors in an early grave. But director Rodrigo Cortes takes the idea one step further with ‘Buried’ by extending the intensity of Uma Thurman’s underground awakening in Tarantino’s ‘Kill Bill: Volume 2’ to an unbearable 90 minutes.

Black screen, heavy breathing; for a full minute we sit trapped in darkness before the desperate flicks of a lighter finally illuminate the dirtied features of truck driver Paul Conroy (Reynolds). With his convoy ambushed and mistaken for a soldier, he’s kidnapped, buried alive and held for ransom by an unseen captor with little time or means to deliver the money which promises his freedom.

Ryan Reynolds, the recently named lead in upcoming superhero film ‘Green Lantern’ and a man known more for his fast mouth and quick humour may seem an unlikely choice for experimental cinema, but here he shows a side we rarely get to see. By enduring mental and physical torture he manages to deliver an intimate and emotional performance which is easily a career best.

Armed with little more than a lighter and mobile phone, Reynolds manages to explore the full range of emotions. Panic, anger, humour and a deep sense of abandonment bought on not only from his situation but reinforced by the everyday frustrations we all suffer. Answer phones, on hold music, fractured relationships and dismissive responsibilities from employers as he fights to make contact with someone, anyone, from the outside world that might strengthen his dying sense of hope.

One of the films biggest surprises was the amount of anger aimed at the Americans, the Iraqi war, wasted lives and the problems not only soldiers but civilians face when surrounded by conflict without the means or promised resources they clearly need.

A ballsy script and the fine performance matched with some ingenious cinematography prevents the film being labelled just an exercise in cinematic technique. It's a claustrophobic's worst nightmare, a visceral experience that left me gasping for air and begging for daylight!