Buried

An entire film set in a wooden box buried underground with just one on-screen actor. Sounds like a recipe for a very badly done, on-the-cheap indie film. Instead, it’s a brilliant exploration of dealing with a crisis.

The overall premise of Buried is undeniably simple; Ryan Reynolds plays a civilian truck driver working in Iraq who awakens to find himself buried alive with only a mobile phone and a few possessions to survive.

The initial panic and general claustrophobic feel are communicated very well with a multitude of cut-away coffins and camera tricks. For a film set entirely in a box, it really is amazing what the director has managed to pull off.

Most of the actual drama comes from the subsequent phonecalls our hapless driver makes. With just a few regular contacts, faces become irrelevant as he communicates with the outside world. I won’t ruin the troubles Reynolds faces, but I will say some are questionable while others make you seethe (in a good way).

Ignoring the real world issues of being buried alive, the ending brings a very well-rounded close the entire thing. Definitely one to watch.

My rating: 8/10