Trapped

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Movie Review by Nigel A. Messenger

Starring: Charlize Theron, Kevin Bacon, Courtney Love, Stuart Townsend, Pruitt Taylor Vince

Director: Luis Mandoki

On the surface TRAPPED might seem like just another film about a kidnapping but it’s the way this crime is carried out that makes the difference and creates the tension.

The bad guy Joe (Kevin Bacon) (that bit’s not difficult to guess) breaks into his target family’s home and kidnaps their young daughter Abby (Dakota Fanning). While Abby is taken away to another location Joe stays at the house with the mother Karen (Charlize Theron). Meanwhile Will (Stuart Townsend), Karen’s husband, is away from home attending a medical conference and he is trapped in his hotel room at gunpoint by Joe’s wife and partner in crime Cheryl (Courtney Love). Over the next 24 hours Will must get the ransom accompanied by Cheryl and deliver it to Joe and Karen to safely get their daughter back.

Joe thinks he has every detail covered but he hasn’t taken into account the little girls dependence on medication to control her asthma. He also claims to have selected the couple by his usual kidnapping criteria – an attractive target wife to be the target of his sexual advances (and Charlize Theron certainly does look extremely hot) however there is every possibility that this time he has additional motives.

TRAPPED sets out to be a tense thriller and succeeds due to an interesting story, tight directing by Luis Mandoki and convincing performances by a well cast group of actors.

If you want gripping entertainment – this is it, if you want to fall asleep in front of the screen you had better pick something else.

5 out of 6 stars