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Tuesday, November 23, 2010

[7.50/10] Buried (2010)


Buried (2010)

When Paul Conroy awakens six feet underground with no idea of who put him there or why, life for the truck driver contracted to work in Iraq instantly becomes a hellish struggle for survival. Buried with only a cell phone and a lighter, his contact with the outside world and ability to piece together clues that could help him discover his location are maddeningly limited. Poor reception, a rapidly draining battery, and a dwindling oxygen supply become his worst enemies in a tightly confined race against time. Spanish filmmaker Rodrigo Cortés' second full-length feature film is, hands down, the most utterly claustrophobic movie ever made, as it's entirely shot in a single narrow wooden coffin! "Buried" is super uncomfortable to watch and a nightmare-come-true for people, like me, who have issues with claustrophobia. "Buried"'s 'limited space' settings create an atmosphere of claustrophobic intensity, leaving the viewer unable to take a deep breath, literally gasping for air. Plus, the impasse that the character finds himself in, contributes to the film's overall effectiveness. "Buried" is single-handedly driven by Ryan Reynolds's exceptional performance as the doomed truck driver Paul, who does everything he can to save his life, fighting panic and frustration. Reynolds's acting skills have improved tremendously over the years, and it really shows here. He carries the whole movie on his shoulders, and performs terrifically - he's believable, emotionally expressive, and very convincing in portraying genuine fear and desperation .Moreover, Raynolds brings a true fighting spirit to his character and makes him consistently engaging, earning and retaining audience sympathy throughout. "Buried" is very hard to shoot movie, due its limited scope and settings, but Rodrigo Cortés does an outstanding job. His direction is highly competent, providing a great variety of camera angles, with all of the movements paced excellently. Rodrigo Cortés' creativity and incredible shooting versatility compensates for the film's lack of various set pieces, and the result is rather impressive! All in all, "Buried" can be considered as an experimental type of film, but a very good one - it's an inventive, unpredictable, gripping and super-tense thriller, that possesses an undeniable originality.

12 comments:

Unknown said...

This film was canned by many people around me, I was one of the few who thought it was pretty decent. I agree with what you think of it.

George Beremov [Nebular] said...

J-son, to me 'decent' sounds like 'average', and I thought "Buried" was way above average :) Glad you liked it too, buddy :)

Dempsey Sanders said...

George my man, I was hoping you might review this at some point as I was interested what you might think of it. I also loved it, full credit for director and its main star on what couldnt of been an easy time of keeping us glued to our seats

RaShelle Workman said...

Hi George - This movie sounds terrifying. I'll have to watch just to see how it's pulled off. Plus, I do love Ryan Reynolds, too.

✗✗ said...

WOW this sounds awesome! I'm gonna have to give it a try. I like films that aren't afraid to try something new.

Unknown said...

Ah my bad! Poor choice of words, I gave it a B+ (4 out of 5 stars). It was good!

Anonymous said...

Great review! Congrats on making the top 5 for voting and best of luck!!
Dreaded Dreams
Petunia Scareum

George Beremov [Nebular] said...

Thank you so much, guys. Glad you liked the review.

Congratulations for making the top 5 Newcomers to you, too. ;)

George Beremov [Nebular] said...

Demps, I wasn't able to review it earlier, since I missed it at the cinemas. Are you pleased with my review? :) I was on the edge of my seat the whole time, my heart was pumping hard and I was gasping for air. :)

George Beremov [Nebular] said...

Hi RaShelle! And welcome to CineMarvellous :)
This film is every bit as terrifying as it sounds. You should definitely give it a shot.

George Beremov [Nebular] said...

Nicole, I do too, and "Buried" is one hell of a daring film! :)

George Beremov [Nebular] said...

J-SON, your choice of words is never poor ;)