Movie Review

Buried

“Buried” taps into one of the few remaining stories of the Iraq war, civilians being taken hostage. Just what makes this one particularly rich with suspense is that it all takes place within the condensed and claustrophobic space of a wooden box buried beneath the ground. Ryan Reynolds gives his best performance as Paul Conroy, a truck driver for a contracting firm whose convoy was attacked and he taken and put inside a wooden coffin. The movie begins with him in the dark, the only light coming from a Zippo he has on hand, and later, some green glow sticks. He has been given a cell phone and told by his kidnappers that he must negotiate $5 million dollars from the United States or he will die. Low on oxygen, time, cell phone battery, and space, Paul begins calling everyone from his wife, a hostage negotiator working with the FBI, the personnel director of his company, and his kidnapper in order to lower his price.

“Buried” makes a daring approach by keeping the focus on Paul the entire time yet never feels dull. Chris Sparling’s screenplay may have holes (who knew cell reception could be so good six feet under?) but does an expert job of turning this tiny space into an even more terrifying and uninhabitable one, while his nods toward our governments attempts only to cover its own ass ring sadly true. Reynolds is terrific here, a ball of anxiety, frustration, and anger that’s not only gripping but heart-breaking. Director Rodrigo Cortes makes good use of the lighting and his camera angles bring even more life to this tight space. “Buried” is a suspenseful, well acted, and devastating thriller that proves a low-budget and condensed spacing are no handicaps. It buries almost every other big-budget thriller this year.

Craig's Grade: B+

A	10.9%
B	41.8%
C	31.8%
D	15.3%
F	0.3%