Written and directed by Marc Schießer, Malina wakes up disoriented in the trunk of a speeding car and discovers to her horror that she is missing more than her memory. With her mobile phone as the only link to the outside world, she wages a desperate battle for survival. Starring: Sina Martens, Luise Helm, Artjom Gilz, Charles Rettinghaus, Janina Sachau and Poal Cairo.
Claustrophobic thrillers are an intensely difficult type of film to get right, even more so in today’s world of minimal attention spans but Marc Schießer rises to that challenge. The first box to be ticked is a convincing character, Malina has to take all the weight of this story and she does it well with the help of Sina Martens. Not only does she have a great, compelling personality, she has a surprising sense of humour and a complexity to her past. She’s written extremely well to ensure matching her with the tense situation holds you attention from start to finish.
Martens is easy to watch, you’re effortlessly drawn in by her deadly plight but she also creates the strength to never let you give up on her, to believe that she has a fighting chance. Schießer’s writing is excellently consistent, the progression is pitch perfect and the tension never lets up. It also knows exactly when to up the ante, it never leaves things too long without a new obstacle or piece of information. It alludes to Malina’s background but satisfyingly makes you wait to uncover it, helping to add layers to her struggle.
One of the biggest problems with such a contained film is its physical limitations but yet again, Schießer is up for that challenge. Adding so much movement and energy with his direction to never feel stagnant or suffocating. Trunk: Locked In takes its lead from a lot of modern action films, moving with its character, changing up the angles and perspectives, keeping things fresh. It builds an enthralling atmosphere that has hints of The Guilty and the cinematography does a fantastic job building detail within such a dark environment.
Trunk: Locked In is a gripping and entertaining thriller, it’s tense from start to finish but also adds surprising notes of comedy. The writing is excellent, it keeps moving forward, nothing is too unrealistic, and it creates a superb character in Malina, who is easy to root for and follow. Sina Martens’ performance is everything you could ask for, she is absolutely filled with raw pain, emotion and anger, she’s entirely convincing and charismatic to boot. Not only that but the cherry on top is that it comes in at that sweet spot between ninety and one hundred minutes.
FilmCarnage.com 