Blackout (2008)

'You can plan your whole life out. You can plot the most complex course. But sooner or later, you're gonna walk in some piece of sh*t elevator'.

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Directed by Rigoberto Castaneda 

Starring: Amber Tamblyn, Aiden Gillen, Armie Hammer, Katie Stuart

Released: May 29th 2008

Box Office: $300,000

Concept

Claudia, Tommy and Karl are trapped in an elevator during a power outage. that's the concept at face value, but the three characters have their own personal stories and flashbacks which could be the same for everybody in the entire world. 

Claudia is a student that lives with her frail grandmother, and Claudia's story follows her relationship with her elderly relative and the bond and love she has with her.

Tommy on the other hand is a bit of a loose cannon, an ex drug addict who protects his girlfriend from her violent father and the plan he has to get her out of that situation and escape. 

Karl on the other hand is a widower, and to fill the void his deceased wife left behind he takes care of his daughter... and goes to clubs to meet women and murder them in artistic fashion. He has just left a woman for dead, and his daughter is visiting his apartment the day after...

So you have three characters with three different stories, each with their own problems and goals they are trying to accomplish but are caged in by the elevator. As time goes on... they start becoming more unpredictable, trapped in metallic walls for hours as desperation sinks in, who will make it out of the blackout?

Review

Based on a novel by Gianluca Morozzi this tale is a psychological one. How three strangers come to meet with overpowered problems in their lives. The elevator itself is an obstacle and not a problem in itself... compared to the character's that is. Don't worry about violence either, it has that too, with a scene that makes my leg ache just thinking about it.

Sadly this film was a flop, but if you liked M Night Shyamalan's  Devil You will like this film, take it as a better horror movie rather than the usual bad plot twist. There is no plot twist in this film, spoiler alert perhaps so don't worry about one. Just kick back, rent this out and prepare to feel awfully claustrophobic.