Film Review: Locked

At this point, it is safe to refer to Swedish megastar Bill Skarsgård as a veritable scream king. After first taking notice of Skarsgård in Netflix’s vastly underrated Hemlock Grove, I followed his lead all over the genre spectrum. From transformative roles in Stephen King’s It and Nosferatu to scene-stealing turns in Barbarian, Villains, The Crow, and Hulu’s Castle Rock, there has been no shortage of iconic performances in the horror space. In Locked, Skarsgård gets to channel major Final Boy energy as a bleach-blond deadbeat dad in serious need of a wakeup call. An intense, claustrophobic thriller that thrives on its simplicity, Locked presents a battle of wits between two men trapped in vastly different ways—one in an impenetrable SUV, the other in his own twisted sense of justice. Featuring stellar performances by Bill Skarsgård and Anthony Hopkins, director David Yarovesky (Brightburn, Nightbooks) transforms a confined setting into a nerve-wracking psychological showdown. Brutal, suspenseful, and darkly entertaining, Locked breaks into a harrowing horror/thriller package that never lets up.

From the very first frame, Yarovesky and cinematographer Michael Dallatorre steep Locked in the grimy atmosphere of a harsh, not-so-distant version of the future. Eddie (Skarsgård) seems to be stuck in a bad cycle. He cannot come up with enough funds to pick up his van from the mechanic, nor can he ever seem to make it to his daughter, Sarah (Ashley Cartwright), on Wednesdays and Fridays to grab her from school. In a desperate means to make the money he needs, Eddie lifts wallets and breaks into cars. He squanders what he has on lottery tickets, chugging away on his vape as he navigates the slummy streets of a city overgrown with junkies and graffiti. He spots a gorgeous-looking vehicle with heavily tinted windows, sitting snugly in the middle of a secluded parking lot. To Eddie’s surprise, the driver’s door of the Dolus vehicle is unlocked. Not thinking twice, he hops right in to see what he can pilfer, unknowingly sealing himself inside.

Eddie quickly realizes that the owner has set a trap within this high-tech SUV. The windows refuse to break. The locks cannot be reversed. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth signals have been jammed. The windows are so tinted that no one can see inside. As Eddie becomes more desperate for escape, a mysterious caller identified by ID as “ANSWER ME” rings in over and over again. Finally, with no other options, Eddie relents. The intimidating voice of William greets him, claiming to be the owner of this car. At once scolding Eddie for his misdeeds, William blankly states that this now makes seventh thieves total who have broken into his car; the previous six resulted in not a single arrest. Perhaps the two of them can reach an understanding? Referring to Eddie as a naughty boy, Anthony Hopkins relishes each juicy line of dialogue he spouts as the unhinged William.

What follows becomes an intense game of cat-and-mouse between the street-smart Eddie and the sadistic, scholarly William. Their verbal battles are electric, with Hopkins playing up William’s sociopathic tendencies and glee. Their exchanges transform to battles of wits, with tension rising to a crescendo of a finale. Along the way, William essentially tortures Eddie. William appears like an unseen Jigsaw, but is he trying to impart life lessons, or just murder the unlucky Eddie? He deprives Eddie of food and drink, uses the car’s features to taser Eddie, blasts ear-bleeding yodeling tunes, toys with extreme weather changes, and watches Eddie’s every movement through the vehicle’s many internal cameras. Each character has a backstory that drives them to different extremes. Even when the motivations are obvious, presenting William as fueled by his thirst for vengeance works within the framework of the nail-biting story at hand.

Locked mostly rests on the shoulders of Bill Skarsgård, whose Eddie appears in nearly every frame. Skarsgård, to no one’s surprise, ably takes on the task at hand by making Eddie into a flawed character we grow to love. He regrets the situation with his daughter, hopeful through teary eyes and cracked lips that he will be able to see her again. Eddie’s growth is one of the best facets here. Without an actor as assured as Skarsgård, it would be difficult to care as much as about Eddie’s survival. As with Phone Booth or Cellular before it, Locked would not be nearly as strong without a vocal performance near or equal to the onscreen one we follow for most of the runtime. Thankfully, later in his career, Hopkins still has a magnetic presence, terrifying even just as a faceless voice. William oozes menace, alternating between playful tormentor and unhinged executioner. The unpredictability makes each phone call one that will have viewers on the edge of their seats. By the time Hopkins appears in physical form, his very aura sent chills down my spine.

Locked also makes the wise choice never to break away from the action happening inside of the vehicle. Some of the one-shot takes emphasize how trapped and alone Eddie may be, and we see no one racing to his rescue on the outside, or attempting to solve the nature of his disappearance. That the sole focus stays within the doors of the SUV charges a breakneck energy into the piece; no one can save Eddie from this dire situation other than himself. The twisted dark humor and psychological warfare employed by William are always exciting to watch. Who cares if some of the car’s functionality may be exaggerated or implausible? A slightly futuristic piece anchored by two powerful performances may be impossible to resist, especially given the satisfying emotional arc of its main character. A high-stakes thriller with bite, Locked houses heart inside its goodie bag of disturbing surprises.

Get Locked in a killer vehicle with a Skarsgård brother, zooming exclusively into theaters on Friday, March 21st.