Eddie Barrish (Bill Skarsgård) has been trying to turn his life around, and get back in his young daughter Sarah’s (Ashley Cartwright) life. However, on the day he was supposed to pick up Sarah from school, his van broke down and mechanic Karl (Michael Eklund) won’t give him his vehicle until he pays the $475 bill balance. Eddie makes some calls, and walks around the city looking for a way to make some quick cash. He also falls into old habits, checking for unlocked cars he can loot. He comes across an expensive-looking Dolus SUV sitting unlocked in an empty parking lot, and thinks he has finally scored. But this is just the start of what is going to be a long, terrifying ordeal.

After Eddie rummages the vehicle for anything worth a few bucks, he discovers he’s been locked inside. The car had been sound-proofed, the windows blacked out, and the Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and cell signals appear to be jammed, so there’s no way to call for help. The windows and doors also appear to be bullet-proof, so he can’t even break his way out—and he injures himself trying. Soon, Eddie hears constant ringing and an alert of an incoming call on the car’s vehicle’s infotainment screen. He finally caves and answers the call, hearing the voice of a man with a British accent, who identifies himself as a doctor named Willian (Anthony Hopkins). William informs Eddie that his vehicle had been broken into 6 times previously, without a single arrest. So he had set this trap and Eddie took the bait.

William has full remote control of the vehicle and plans to torment Eddie if he doesn’t cooperate—which includes shocking him with electrified seats, using extreme temperatures and loud music to play mental mind games, or just starving him with no food or water. While William may be rich and well-educated, Eddie is convinced he can outwit this guy and escape using his street smarts. However, William is watching his every move using the cameras inside the vehicle, and seems to have planned for every situation, and will not shy away from violence in order to teach Eddie a lesson.

Locked is primarily a one-man-show for actor Bill Skarsgård, with much of the film taking place in the vehicle, with him acting against the villainous voice of Anthony Hopkins. We see Eddie go through a wide range of emotions. At first he’s angry and upset for getting into this situation and lashes out at William. But he’s also constantly thinking about his daughter. The only reason he is in this situation is because he was trying to get money to be with his daughter. Now he fears that he may not see her again, or even worse, that William may try to hurt her as well. Skarsgård gives a great visceral and emotional performance as we see Eddie struggle to come to terms with his situation and try to find a way out. Can Eddie even reason with William, or is he just a psychopath with an unwavering endgame in mind? Hopkins is also great as this conservative man who’s angry with the system, and blames the world for a tragedy in his past. Now he’s out for vengeance. Throughout the film, I found myself wavering as to whether I was siding with Eddie or William. While William’s initial actions may have had some merit, he has decided to go a very extreme route. And Eddie also initially blames others for his situation. William wants him to be truly sorry and experience the consequences of his actions, but even if Eddie does take ownership for his actions, will that convince William to let him go?!

The film is a tense 90-minute phycological thriller with some unexpected twists and turns. I couldn’t help but be reminded of other recent movie Drop, or more-so 2002’s Phone Booth, which found Colin Farrell’s character trapped in a phone booth trying to negotiate with someone who wanted him dead. It has a similar tone and feel, but with a different claustrophobic setting.

Paramount has released Locked on physical media only on DVD, but the film is also available on Digital in 4K. We were sent the DVD for review. The picture looks pretty solid and clean for an SD presentation, but feels a bit dull overall, lacking that extra level of clarity you get with an HD or 4K release. The audio track fares better with a very immersive 5.1 Dolby Digital track. Dialogue is clear throughout, and the track captures the ambiance of the setting—whether it’s the pouring rain outside the vehicle, or the blasting radio as William tries to torment Eddie. The film also makes some interesting music choices that feel like part of the storytelling—from the drums of a street performer becoming the initial score, to polka/yodeling/classical music as William plays with Eddie.

The barebones DVD release only includes the film itself with optional English subtitles and scene selection. There is no bonus material or digital copy included. The DVD disc is placed in a standard DVD keepcase—our copy did not include a slipcover.

What’s Included:

Film: (1:34:59)

DVD:
• 480i / Widescreen 2.76:1
• Audio: English 5.1 Dolby Digital
• Subtitles: English SDH

Extras:

This release does not include any bonus material.

Final Thoughts:

Locked is an entertaining psychological thriller that allows Bill Skarsgård to really showcase his acting talent. Much of the film is a one-man-show, with his character Eddie going through all sorts of emotions as he verbally faces off with William while he’s trapped in this state-of-the-art SUV and struggles to survive and get back to his daughter. Paramount’s DVD release looks good for a DVD, but lacks the clarity one expects from a modern HD or 4K release. The DVD is also barebones, with no bonus material or digital copy. For that reason, I’d probably recommend the 4K digital release over the disc. Either way it’s worth checking out. The film is also currently streaming on Hulu if you want to check it out there before a blind buy.