Panic Room

Directed By: David Fincher
Written By: David Koepp
2002

Jodi Foster - Meg Altman
Kristen Stewart - Sarah

The uneasiness in this movie is felt from the very opening credits when large letters hover menacingly over the Manhattan skyline. The characters themselves seem ready to crack. For instance, Jodi Foster plays Meg Altman, the recently divorced wife to a pharmaceutical specialist. She is the awkwardly overbearing mother to Sarah who is at that age where she thinks she doesn’t need her mom yet knows she still does.
The movie opens up with the two of them being shown a brownstone house in Manhattan’s northwest side. It has everything you could want, lots of space a decent backyard (sort of) and even more - a safe room, a room where the residents can go if they are being burglarized and call the police. Being the overprotective mom she is this is probably the selling point. They move in and are promptly - you guessed it - burglarized. After they go to bed three men break in looking to crack open a safe in the panic room. They are an odd bunch to say the least and the oddest one has to be Raul who plays himself up to be a real hotshot. Mrs. Altman hears them downstairs and rushes both her daughter and herself into the panic room before the buglers can catch them. Unfortunately the panic room becomes more of a tomb than a refuge for her and her daughter as she didn’t connect the room’s phone line. Meg has seen their faces so she knows her and her daughter will most likely be killed. The burglars know there is at least three million dollars in the Panic Room and they will stop at nothing to get it. There are two very strong forces battling each other here - the will to live and greed. They are all desperate emotions and only one side can win. Which will it be?
Cinematically this film is superb. The camera goes anywhere. With a clever mix of good footage and computer-generated effects we don’t go around corners, we go through them. It adds a disquieting feeling to the movie and only increases our participation as spectators to the events that unfold.
The suspense certainly doesn’t lack either. When Mrs. Altman must rush to get the cell phone while the burglars are bickering downstairs we see everything in slow motion and desperately hope she’ll get it in time.
The characters are well done as well. You may be surprised to find that the burglars in particular aren’t cookie-cutter robbers but rather are very distinct and believable
Overall a great suspense film that leaves a lasting impression.
3 stars