I'm surprised by such poor reviews here! The film is really cool and impressive. I was really gripped by Ivan's story which we learn about through yes, a series of phone calls told from the inside of his car. Tom Hardy puts in a splendid performance as do an equally accomplished cast of actors on the phone to this somewhat stressed lead character. It's a movie about people and real life. It's not your usual thriller but it really is tense and very watchable. Some beautiful cinematography too, the motorway rendered in some glorious colours. Very good.
Such an unusual film, which takes place in a car journey over 3 hours on a motorway to London, with only the driver (Locke) appearing on screen. The other characters in the story are heard on the phone. I found it rather strange at first, but the unfolding story held my attention, and it stopped at just the right point to keep me thinking about it for several days.
This film is an oddity - and probably would have worked better as a TV drama or even a radio play. As a movie, I can't help feeling the talent is wasted - and still wonder what the Costume Department did as there is one man wearing one lot of clothes in this film!
If you love concrete, you'll adore this, as civil engineer-ish bloke drives away from his work responsibilities for other reasons (no spoilers here).
I must admit it got on my nerves after a while and, fatally, I just didn't believe this character would do this (despite his backstory).
The reaction of those he speaks to on the phone also tested my patience and I couldn't quite believe the reactions.
Loved the in-joke of a football player called Caldwell (Called Well) though! Hee hee!
Locke in a very bland nutshell is film about a bloke in a car for a whole 85 minutes. Sound boring? Well it shouldn't because it has the fun, fast-pace action, engaging and astounding acting and a great British cast that includes the wonderfully talented Olivia Colman.
Directed by Steven Knight, Locke is a gripping drama movie that centres itself on the awesomely cool Tom Hardy who plays the devoted family-man-come-construction-manager called Ivan Locke. Ivan is a man who works excruciatingly hard to achieve the life that he always dreamed of, which entails a great job, a beautiful wife and family. Nonetheless, all becomes clear in this cesspit of ambiguity as Locke unveils a secret that distresses and shocks his family and puts his job on the line. Sorry Tom Hardy fans but he’s not a good guy in Locke. In fact, he’s the typical love-rat that gets his co-worker pregnant. Ivan does the ‘noble’ thing and drives to London to welcome the illegitimate baby into the world while his family are waiting at home. However, there must be some type of product placement in the film as Ivan Locke is constantly juggling conversations of confessing his infidelity to his wife, liaising with his boss and reassuring his mistress on his phone.
Steven Knight wrote Locke and co-directed it with Nick Angel; this Mystery and suspense drama has been given a respectable 15 rating for cinema and film as it contains strong language so if you're underage, sorry folks but you're just going to have to wait until you're old enough to watch this motivating movie.
The public responded very well to this movie as there were a lot of great reviews about Hardy’s acting skills and Knight’s writing skills; they were the perfect combination for a phenomenal masterpiece.
A lot of critiques have put their hands together and applauded Hardy for his one-man-band performance; it mustn't be an easy job to act an entire movie out with a huge proportion of monologues but this highlights Tom Hardy’s impressive expertise. He manages to captivate them as well as make them believe his various emotions. It really is a true talent.
Locke has a great sense of humour; while it isn't a comedy, it does have some witty quotes in the script which will leave you smirking or reiterating it to your mate the next time you see them. We cannot help but love Locke’s half-arsed and satirical attitude, which allows him to come up with things, such as ‘Donal, don’t trust God when it comes to concrete’. Also, we can't help but snigger at his responses to his co-worker: ‘B: Be quick! L: Yes, but there are speed limits!’ and ‘B: I love you. L: Okay then. B: Can’t you say it back just once? L: No, but I can be there as fast as traffic will allow.’
Locke is a completely motivating film with a great plot that makes you feel all of the emotions.