It's the middle of the night. A mother is hiding in a secure room, in her house, with her young daughter. Three intruders have broken in.
The room is a `panic room', sadly said to be commonly installed in new rich peoples houses in Manhattan who live in fear of home invasions.
It has thick steel walls, food and medical provisions, its own power, phone and air supply, and is designed to keep intruders out.
You rush in, punch a button, a door rapidly slams shut and settle in, with the invaders on the outside. Surveillance cameras give views of the rest of the house.
David Koepp (Carlito's Way, Mission: Impossible, and Snake Eyes) wrote Panic Room. David Ficher (Seven, The Game, Fight Club) is the director. They have concocted a classy thriller, a rich piece of escapism about people trying to escape.
Jodie Foster is in her element as the mum Meg. Meg is capable and smart which is handy because Panic Room becomes a strategic battle. The defenses of the room are formidable and the intruders will only get in if the can persuade Meg or her daughter Sarah (Kristen Stewart) to open the door.
The intruders are a mix. One is a dangerous hothead, another is a strategist and the other put the team together. They expected the house to be empty and need to adjust to the idea of an assault on the inhabitants of the house.
Forrest Whitaker (The Crying Game) is the strategist and brains amongst the intruders. Country singer Dwight Yoakam is a credible maddie and Jared Leto makes up the trio. Young Kristen Stewart does a fine job as young Sarah.
The opening credits are spectacular and the camera craft by David Ficher and his team is outstanding. Ficher loves to swing cameras through the house in elaborate, impressive, digitally enhanced shots. Panic Room is a terrific display of film making. It will have the adrenaline rushing.
4 Wide Eyed Flys Out Of Five
The room is a `panic room', sadly said to be commonly installed in new rich peoples houses in Manhattan who live in fear of home invasions.
It has thick steel walls, food and medical provisions, its own power, phone and air supply, and is designed to keep intruders out.
You rush in, punch a button, a door rapidly slams shut and settle in, with the invaders on the outside. Surveillance cameras give views of the rest of the house.
David Koepp (Carlito's Way, Mission: Impossible, and Snake Eyes) wrote Panic Room. David Ficher (Seven, The Game, Fight Club) is the director. They have concocted a classy thriller, a rich piece of escapism about people trying to escape.
Jodie Foster is in her element as the mum Meg. Meg is capable and smart which is handy because Panic Room becomes a strategic battle. The defenses of the room are formidable and the intruders will only get in if the can persuade Meg or her daughter Sarah (Kristen Stewart) to open the door.
The intruders are a mix. One is a dangerous hothead, another is a strategist and the other put the team together. They expected the house to be empty and need to adjust to the idea of an assault on the inhabitants of the house.
Forrest Whitaker (The Crying Game) is the strategist and brains amongst the intruders. Country singer Dwight Yoakam is a credible maddie and Jared Leto makes up the trio. Young Kristen Stewart does a fine job as young Sarah.
The opening credits are spectacular and the camera craft by David Ficher and his team is outstanding. Ficher loves to swing cameras through the house in elaborate, impressive, digitally enhanced shots. Panic Room is a terrific display of film making. It will have the adrenaline rushing.
4 Wide Eyed Flys Out Of Five