Movie Review: Buried

Paul Conroy(Ryan Reynolds) wakes up in a coffin. At first, he is disoriented. Then he searches to find a Zippo and his cell phone. Slowly, he recollects the events. He is a truck driver involved in a non-military role to transport supplies. A group of trucks were ambushed by militants. Now, he is buried underground in a coffin somewhere in Iraq.

Paul tries to contact his wife and his employer unsuccessfully. He then contacts FBI. After the conversation with the authorities, he is contacted by kidnapper. The kidnapper asks for $5 million as ransom. He negotiates with the kidnapper to lower the amount to $1 million. Then he frantically tries every avenue – his wife, his employer and the government – to help him out of the situation.

Rodrigo Cortes directs this gripping thriller. The entire movie takes place inside the coffin with only one actor on the screen. It is like a first person narrative where camera pans out of the coffin for only a few seconds during the entire movie to showcase either the helpless state or shocked state of the protagonist. It is difficult to focus only on the main protagonist throughout the entire duration of the movie and yet make the movie engaging. This is made possible by the direction and the script. The movie tells a story set in contemporary time. But it also serves a metaphor for the common man trying to make a honest living but gets entrapped by conflicts that he is powerless to react or solve.

Ryan Reynolds as Paul Conroy effortlessly convey the multiple emotions of a trapped man. Paul is an ordinary citizen trying to make both ends meet. He tries hard to remain calm in a difficult situation. But he is overtaken by strong feelings often! Ryan scores in many scenes. The narration of will on the voice recorder of his phone and the look on his face when he is betrayed (by his employer and also the government) are a few scenes worth mentioning.

This is a must see.

Language: English

Genre: Thriller

Rating: ****

Tags: Movies,Ryan Reynolds,Rodrigo Cortes,Thriller