Panic Room
Directed by: David Fincher
Written by: David Koepp
Starring: Jodie Foster, Jared Leto, Dwight Yoakam, Forest Whitaker, Kristen Stewart

I didn’t think it could be done. It didn’t seem likely to me that a movie could take place entirely inone house and still be interesting from start to finish. I should have known better than to doubtDavid Fincher.

For anyone who is unclear about what the title of this film means, let me explain. The movie leads usto believe that in many big houses owned by rich people,they often build a secret, highly secure room where the occupants of the house can protect themselvesand their valuables in the event of a home intrusion or other such emergency. Jodie Foster playsMeg Altman, a mother who was recently divorced and is looking to move into a new home with her daughterSarah. Since Meg’s rich ex-husband will be the one picking up the tab for their living expenses,they decide to move into a huge 5-story brownstone in Manhattan. The house happens to have one ofthese aforementioned panic rooms in it — but before they have a chance to learn much about it, they areforced to use it during their first night in the new home, when three men break in unexpectedly.It turns out these men know quite a bit more about the panic room than Meg and Sarah do, including the factthat there is a whole lot of money hidden in it somewhere, stashed there by the house’s previous owner.Since Meg and Sarah have locked themselves into the room, this creates quite an interesting stalematesituation.

Now let me just say that Panic Room is a pretty original idea for a film…except for the fact that I saw the exact same movie about 12 years ago and it was called Home Alone!In all seriousness, Panic Room is kind of like a dark, tense, and realistic version ofHome Alone where the burglars show up a lot better prepared than the good guys. (Don’t ask me to choosewhich film I like better though, because I can’t decide.)

There are two main things that keep this film from getting monotonous: the direction, and the story.

David Fincher directs the movie masterfully, and in his execution he succeeds in keeping us interested(if not enthralled) for the duration of the film.

Although the characters are trapped inside the house, for the most part we as viewers do not feel confinedbecause the camera swoops and dives all over the place. With the help of computer effects, it alsorises up and down through different floors of the house, plunges through wiring and ventilation ducts, andzooms in and out of locks, flashlights and other gadgetry. This is something Fincher did a little bitin Fight Club, and he seems to been encouraged by the results because he uses it even more here.The pacing is also just right, with certain sequences extended or played in slow motion to heighten thesuspense.

Panic Room looks and feels a lot like many of Fincher’s previous films. It has his usual slick, high-techvisual style (once again, another cool set of opening credits– three dimensional words appear to float in frontof buildings at strange angles), and a lot of dark and dingy lighting. Fincher also does not pull any punches as far asviolence goes. This movie is not as extreme as Fight Club or Seven, but there is still afair amount of blood and I am pretty sure you’ll flinch at least once during the film.

The movie was written by David Koepp, who previously wrote and directed Stir Of Echoes (and who apparentlyalso wrote the screenplay for Spiderman). His story is well-crafted and cunning; just when you thinkthere is no place for the story to go, he throws a new twist at you.More importantly, the story is also believable — in other words, it doesn’t cheat the audience.Most of the events are fairly plausible, and the characters are intelligent and self-aware. They don’ttake any unnecessary risks, and this added realism makes the movie that much more intense.

To add another dimension to the film, there is also a story behind each of the intruders. In fact, the movieis almost as much about the bad guys as it is about Meg and her daughter.Forest Whitaker plays Burnham, a security expert who knows the house and the panic room inside out.There are hints that his family is in desperate need of money, otherwise he wouldn’t be here. He alsodislikes violence, and in many ways we feel sorry for him.

His two partners in crime are played by Jared Leto and country singer Dwight Yoakam.Jared Leto was one of the only flaws in this film. I found that I just couldn’t take the guy seriously.I still think of his pretty boy role in My So-Called Life, and since then he hasn’t reallydone much to prove that he goes beyond that as an actor. I guess he was supposed to embody a spoiledbrat sort of character here, which he does, but his overacting dispels some of the grimatmosphere of the film. Yoakam, on the other hand, plays a trigger-happy dirtbag named Raoul whowears a goofy looking ski mask for most of the film. You know, country and rap music seem to have moreand more in common as time goes by.

One other thing to note about Panic Room: the menacing score by Howard Shore is awesome!

Panic Room is a thriller in every sense of the word, and should not be missed, especially if you area fan of any of David Fincher’s past films.It has gut-wrenching suspense, cool visuals, and plenty of surprises to keep you guessing all the waythrough. What it doesn’t have is the acting chops of Macaulay Culkin, but hey I guess you can’t alwayshave everything you want. — Sean