Locke

Tom Hardy gives the performance of a lifetime as a construction foreman caught in emotional turmoil in this self-contained tour de force written and directed by Steven Knight, who also wrote Dirty Pretty Things and TV's Peaky Blinders. Shot almost completely inside a car on the motorway, this slice of real-time drama is an unexpectedly thrilling treat. Hardy plays against type as Ivan Locke, who speaks with a heavy Welsh accent, wears a jumper and cares deeply about his wife, kids and job. Driving from work one evening, before he is scheduled to manage the biggest concrete pour in European history, he fields a stretch of angst-filled phone calls (evocatively performed by a cast that includes Ruth Wilson, Andrew Scott and Olivia Colman). Each interaction ratchets up the pressure as he is determined to do the right thing in response to a life-changing problem. Locke is a rare hero in modern cinema, a moral action man and blazing beacon of heroic normalcy. As well as that, he's a paean to calm - despite the mounting pressure, he always keeps to the speed limit. A milestone film for both actor and film-maker, Locke is extraordinary viewing.