‘Locked In’ Review: A Film Plagued by Tonal Issues and Reliance on Well-Worn Tropes
I was really hyped for Locked In. Even after the negative reviews started pouring in, I held out hope that maybe the flick would prove detractors wrong. As it turns out, I probably should have listened to the naysayers and taken a pass on this banal, cliché-ridden effort that takes itself way too seriously.
Locked In follows Lina (Rose Williams), a young woman who is sent to live with Katherine (Famke Janssen), a childhood friend of her mother’s, after losing her parents. Katherine becomes jealous when Lina develops a bond with her stepson, Jamie (Finn Cole). That bond blossoms into a romance and the two are eventually wed. But Lina has a wandering eye. When another gentleman caller enters the picture, matters take a mysterious turn that creates jealousy and mistrust; a sure recipe for disaster. When Katherine ends up comatose in a nearby hospital, a kindly nurse (Anna Friel), sets out to find out what the hell actually happened to her.
In case you couldn’t tell from the plot crunch, this flick is a tawdry affair that feels like a romance novel cross-pollinated with a dime-store thriller. Unfortunately Locked In never really leans into its influences and plays it completely straight. Instead of scenery-chewing villains, we get a cast of characters that don’t seem to know what kind of film they are in. But I don’t blame the cast for that.
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Instead, I blame Nour Wazzi. As the director, it falls to her to set the tone and she doesn’t strike the appropriate balance here. The film could have won some favor by really leaning into the inherent silliness of Rowan Joffe’s screenplay and giving the onscreen talent the green light to ham it up a bit. But everyone is playing it straight and that makes the wild narrative developments feel all the more preposterous.
In addition to tonal confusion, the film also fails to properly set the stakes. The viewer needs to be pulled in; to be given a reason to care. We don’t get that. All of the characters are cold and checked out. The one character with any redeeming qualities, the kindly nurse, is woefully underutilized. That leaves the viewer stuck with a cast of characters that we have no reason to invest in on any level.
The film’s problems are further compounded by an over-reliance on familiar tropes and stock characters. The tired cliches include but are not limited to the ambitious young woman who comes from modest means trying to fit into a life of privilege; the impossible-to-please mother-in-law who is seemingly incapable of love; the self-sabotaging man-child with more money than common sense; the secret affair that isn’t much of a secret; and last but not least, a love triangle.
Those types of tropes and character archetypes can be effective when they are used in conjunction with narrative developments that break from expectations. But Locked In doesn’t do anything to upend the expected at any point.
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Equally disappointing is the complete lack of atmosphere. The manor where the bulk of the action takes place is grand and stylish. It could have easily been utilized to far greater effect. The central locale is full of nooks, crannies, and hiding places. But its charm is never really leveraged. It’s the place where the family at the center of the narrative lives. And that’s it. Films like The Changeling have made such effective use of large dwellings that they began to feel like a living, breathing character. Not the case with Locked In.
Based on the aforementioned failings, I was hoping the flick would at least serve up some steamy, passionate energy. But I was, once again, disappointed. The sexy scenes are formulaic and lacking any sensuality. The sexual chemistry between the characters is absolutely nonexistent.
Locked In comes the closest to being effective in its third act. There are a couple of intense sequences that unfold as the true motivation of each character is revealed. However, these developments amount to too little, too late because the first two acts are void of any real tension. That combined with characters that never feel accessible makes it almost impossible to stay invested. I stuck the film out so I could finish my critique but if I weren’t on the hook for a review, I probably would have tuned out and played a mobile game or redirected my attention elsewhere while I passively watched.
If I haven’t dissuaded you from checking out Locked In, the flick is now streaming on Netflix. But I can’t help but think the Lifetime Movie Network would have been a more fitting home.
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‘Locked In'
Summary
Locked In is far too silly to take itself so seriously.
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