The latest movie in a confined space, a large one: Omid Nooshin's LAST PASSENGER, a good one

You might not think of a speeding train as a confined-space film; after all, there are lots of cars you can move between, including a dining- and/or bar-car where you can eat and drink. Still, if that train is speeding along wildly, and there's no safe way to get off, then it is definitely a confined space. Such is the case for the few remaining passengers in a new film called LAST PASSENGER that opens today in Manhattan. When TrustMovies went just now to get his page of notes that he scribbles as he is watching each new film, he found that page completely blank -- except for the film's title at the top. What happened? So immediately swept up with the story and its execution was he, that he simply forgot to jot down a single sentence. Can there be a better recommendation for a genre movie than that?

Probably not, but in the spirit of good sportsmanship, I'll use my fading memory to tell you a bit about why the film works as well as it does -- without giving away spoilers. First off, Last Passenger is not a great film, for sure, and runaway trains are not anything we haven't seen previously. But that's perfectly OK because the movie doesn't need to be great -- just smart, fast and believable. So the co-writer (with Andrew Love and Kas Graham) and director, Omid Nooshin, manages just that, hooking us with some interesting characters with whom we're happy to travel.

These would include dad, a surgeon (played by Dougray Scott, shown below) and his cute son (Joshua Kaynama); a very attractive woman who has just boarded the train (Kara Tointon, at right); the conductor (Samuel Geker-Kawle); a busy businessman (David Schofield, two photos, below); an older woman (Lindsay Duncan), returning home with gifts for her grandkids; and a fellow with a foreign accent who may be up to no good (Iddo Goldberg, the stand-out performance in this very good cast).

That's pretty much it -- a few extras come and go -- and we're soon down to just half a dozen people for the remainder of the ride. Mr Nooshin does a fine job of handing us small talk and humor, while achieving a slight sense of uneasiness and eventually full-out dread. Suspense is built in two ways: first, what's happening; then second, why?

In stories like this one, some characters must be sacrificed, and Nooshin does a nice job of surprising us with the why and when. The film's most moving scene happens as there's a chance, due to his smaller size, for the young boy only to escape, which would mean his leaving his father. For reasons you will have already learned, this is more than problematic, and the movie manages these moments quite beautifully and surprisingly.

The cast is a very good one, with everyone in fine form, working together initially as adversaries but finally as friends. That we come to care for these people as much as we do, adds to both the suspense and our identification with the film. Nooshin keeps events tumbling over one another so there's little time to look for logic loopholes, and the actors are especially good at creating what looks like quite real behavior under circumstances that range from normal to not at all.

As I say, this is no great film, but if you're in the mood for a thriller these days, you could hardly do better than this. Last Passenger -- another good genre movie from Cohen Media Group (remember The Prey?) and running 97 minutes -- debuts today, Friday, April 25, in New York City at the Regal E-Walk theater.

Will the film play elsewhere theatrically? I've no idea, but it will most likely appear soon on DVD and maybe even via Netflix streaming. (You can stream The Prey there now, as a matter of fact, and if you haven't seen that little genre wonder, you should!)

Steven Knight and Tom Hardy turn LOCKE into an original and compelling "confined space" film

If LOCKE is a stunt -- and to some extent, it certainly is -- then it's a damned good one. This is one of those increasingly frequent "confined-space" movies  (with the exception of its initial scene, in which the title character, played by Tom Hardy leaves a construction site, gets into his car and drives away) where every-thing takes place inside an enclosed space -- that car -- from which no exit seems easily possible. The odd thing about Locke, however, is that it is not a thriller, the genre into which every other confined space film I can think of -- from ATM to Brake, Buried, Elevator, Freezer and Last Passenger (which also opens this week and takes place entirely on a train) -- neatly fits. And why not? With enough events front-loaded, that confined space just increases the thrills. But no: Locke is... well, it's a drama for adults. How's that from a movie-maker -- Steven Knight -- who clearly has quite the pair of balls.

Mr. Knight, shown at left, has been more prolific as screenwriter (Dirty Pretty Things, Amazing Grace and Eastern Promises are among his many efforts) than as a director (Redemption), but Locke may change all that. So compelling an actor is Mr. Hardy and so specific and alert is Knight's script to the life and problems of his character (whose name is Ivan Locke) that, together, they turn the movie into a tour de force of feeling, emotion, anger, surprise and even a little humor. How? Knight lets his audience slowly learn where Locke is going and why, while simultaneously allowing us understand what this means to the life this man had led up until now. Knight and Hardy manage all this via phone conversations -- which cannot be overly expository or we'd simply not buy them -- that fill in everything from situation to character.

Locke talks to his wife, his son, another woman who is important to him, his boss, an underling, and a couple of other people, all of whom come across marvelously, thanks to voice casting and talent. (Among the voices are those of Olivia Colman, Ruth Wilson and Tom Holland.)

There is a job at stake and a family life that may be shattered, and Mr. Hardy's fine performance captures all of it and more -- lots of tiny moments that add up to "character" -- his, and the folk to whom he is speaking. The plot -- and yes, there is one -- is derived from all these conversations, which build into something quite special.

Aurally, the movie is magnificent. I don't see how you could ask for much more, sound-wise. (If broadcast during the heyday of radio, Locke would have been an award-winning drama). Visually, there are times when I think more could have been done -- the camera remains on or near our man, occasionally glancing out the windshield or at the car phone by which these many calls are being made -- but thanks to Hardy's face and talent, Locke at least comes close enough for jazz.

Marriage, fidelity, parenting, employment: the themes here are big ones, and they are given their due. So wrapped up do we become in Ivan's situation that by the finale, when we hear a certain sound -- one, by the way, that we've heard countless times before -- such a flood of emotion/satisfaction/healing is released that we're likely to be caught by surprise at how very moved we suddenly are.

Locke, from A24 and running just 85 minutes, opens this Friday, April 25, in New York City at the AMC Lincoln Square 13 and the Angelika Film Center, and then on Friday, May 2, it will open in Berkeley, Los Angeles, Phoenix and San Raphael.  To see all currently scheduled playdates, cities and theaters, click here and then click on THEATERS. (The movie's site could use some updating, however, as the Los Angeles entry seems to have the wrong theater and the wrong date....)

The latest contained-space thriller: Salomon/Doganoglu/Weisfeld's FREEZER

What initially seemed different, creepy, promising and fun -- single-room/contai-ned space thrillers such as ATM, Brake, Buried, Devil, Elevator and Vehicle 14 -- is beginning to look a little long in the tooth, as more and movie-makers hop on the band-wagon and threaten to bring this sub-genre to a halt by virtue of the weight of sheer numbers, not to mention content that's looking more and more been-there/done-that. The latest addition to the group is FREEZER (hmmm.... I just noticed, too, that so many of these films sport a single-word title, as though the contained space does not leave room for even a second word), the product of director/cinematographer Mikael Salomon (shown below), and screen-writers Tom Doganoglu and newcomer Shane Weisfeld.

Freezer is efficient, fast-moving and short, with a number of surprises and twists along the way. It's a decent enough time-waster, for sure, but given the number of this kind of movie you may have already seen, it breaks no new ground.

In fact, it gets off to a bit of a rocky start, thanks to its wavering tone. A poor (but awfully sexy) schlub (Dylan McDermott, below) wakes up to find himself bound-arms-and-legs in a meat freezer. He is then assaulted by a couple of nasty Russian mob guys and told that, if he doesn't give back "the money," he'll be killed. You might think that a guy in that position would be non-plussed at best, scared out of his wits at worst. Instead, our "hero" keeps coming back with would-be clever zingers to toss in the face of his captors. This goes on for quite awhile.

Possible spoiler ahead: This silly tonal dissonance makes more sense by the time you've reached the end of the film, but getting into it and buying it all will take a suspension of disbelief lasting too long for many viewers.

Fortunately, Freezer has a number of surprises up its sleeve. These keep coming with enough regularity to hold interest as the movie opens up to include more and more characters, while still taking place in that confounded frozen space.

In addition to the none-too-bright Russian mobsters (one of whom, Andrey Ivchenko, is shown far right, giving our hero a bear hug), as well as Peter Facinelli (below), playing a wounded cop, hot on the trail of the Russian mob.

Most luscious of all, of course, is the mob's gun moll and girlfriend of its leader's son, played by Yuliya Snigir (below, a hottie from Russia who is also a Chess Master, last seen over here in A Good Day to Die Hard).

Everyone does a creditable job, given the twists and turns they're asked to make, and I suspect that, even if you're a regular fan of movies like this, you won't quite have figured it all out until the conclusion. Even then, however, you may be likely to ask, "So what?"

Freezer, from Anchor Bay Films and running just 82 minutes  opens this Friday, January 17, in Los Angeles at Laemmle's NoHo 7. It will make its Blu-ray/DVDebut, as well as appearing on VOD, the following Tuesday, January 21.

Christian James and Dan Palmer's witty STALLED offers fabulous fun by co-joining the contained-space and zombie genres

Surely by now it must be clear -- what with those AMC Walking Dead zombies having slo-moed their way into the mainstream and the [REC] series offering its best and also funniest of its film via number 3 -- that the zombie genre is now mainly fit for (mostly) fun. When a so-so example like World War Z is greeted with critical hosannas and big box-office, it is sadly certain that no real reinvention (other than making zombies funny) is in the cards anytime soon. All of which is to say that the British and very low-budget movie STALLED comes on like a breath of fresh air in this increasingly stale genre. (It even -- see alternate poster below -- has the audacity to make fun of the only really good effect in all of World War Z.)

As directed by Christian James and written by Dan Palmer (who also portrays the lead character), Stalled has the very smart idea of joining two genres: the zombie movie and the confined-space thriller (Brake, Devil, Buried, etc.). This combination works amazingly well -- mostly because Stalled is much more a comedy than a horror film (although the blood and gore rise to a rather high level). The title itself should bring a smile to your face, as it refers to the hero of the film, a maintenance man in a hi-rise building who gets stuck in a toilet stall in the women's lavatory during an office Christmas party, just at the moment when -- and isn't it always like this -- the zombie apocalypse breaks out.

Mr. James, shown at left, and his lovely cast have a lot of fun initially toying with the intellectual level of these zombie -- which is probably no more or less than in most other films, but here is played for some terrific, low-key laughter. There's a subplot about a tool box stuffed with money, which we realize will figure in during the course of things. Having the Christmas-party guests in costume is yet another inspired choice for some further humor. Mr. James also knows how to pace a Zombie movie very well. But mostly, it's the genuinely funny and often surprising writing from Mr. Palmer that keeps the movie rolling fast, along with his ability to fill the screen-play with numerous and pointed events, even though we're confined to a toilet. (Better yet, these events are not poop/pee-related, but rather help move the story along and keep us giggling.)

The dialog is pretty funny, too. ("Come and get it!" has perhaps never taken on such disgusting delight.) Along the way, Mr. Palmer (above and below) also dishes up one of the dirtiest jokes ever to grace a movie -- involving ear-piercing, parents, and a computer.

Around the time we get to disco dancing in the toilet -- and a cream-of-the-crop fantasy sequence that follows it -- you will have not simply suspended your disbelief but gleefully stomped all over it. The one caveat I have is that some of the dialog, with its thick British accent, got by me. (We could have used English subtitles, but the movie offers none.)

The use of Christmas carols on the soundtrack is done with utmost charm and care and there are some lovely little touches along the way that are actually rather sweet. Get ready for a couple of ace surprises here, too. And when the end credits roll, don't click off, as there's a smart post-credit sequence in store for those who wait.

Really: What can any halfway intelligent filmmaker do with the zombie genre any longer -- except play it for laughs? That said, there's unlikely to be anything much funnier for quite some time than Stalled. (The film initially appears to have been titled "Cubicle Hero," which ain't a bad name, either.)

The movie, running a brisk 85 minutes, is available now via Netflix streaming and Amazon Instant Video.