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Panic Room (2002)
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Following up the superlative Fight Club was always going to be a Herculean task for director David Fincher. It's little surprise, then, that from its innovative title sequence onwards, this dark thriller bristles with the nervous energy of a film-maker desperate to succeed. Here, Fincher exploits modern society's home-security paranoia, as a bunker-like safe room becomes a source of escalating horror for a mother (Jodie Foster) and daughter trapped by thieves in their New York brownstone. Though the plot is formulaic, it's ruthlessly executed, with the tension building to claustrophobic levels. However, Fincher seems obsessed with breakneck camera movement and unconventional angles, which means at times his extraordinary visual style gets in the way of the action. Fortunately, this doesn't overshadow the cast: Foster is particularly fine as the gutsy heroine, while Forest Whitaker gives a poignant performance as one of the intruders. Ultimately, this is slick and sure entertainment, yet you can't help feeling that Fincher could have done so much better. SF
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| Contains violence, swearing. |
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Tell us what you think
Email us at rtfilmcomments@bbc.co.uk to tell us what you think of this film. Your comments may appear in Radio Times magazine.
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Running time
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107min
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Country of origin
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US
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Genre
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Thriller
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Original language
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English
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Screenplay
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David Koepp
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Theatrical distributor
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Columbia TriStar
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UK cinema certificate
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15
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UK cinema release date
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May 2002
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UK video release date
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October 2002
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Film certification logos reproduced by kind permission of BBFC |
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