Ivan Locke, played by Tom Hardy, is the only character we get to see on screen which if the acting isn’t good enough, can become dull and tiring, however Hardy is absolutely captivating as Locke. I was truly compelled by Locke’s story and situation which Hardy delivers perfectly, hitting every beat perfectly, going from a by-the-books straight-laced good guy, slowly being mentally beaten down throughout his drive is utterly believable and just extremely well done.
The entire film takes place in Locke’s car as he is driving from one part of England to another for some reason not revealed until later in the film. At first it was just vague phone calls, which instantly led me to think suicide or murder, but as the film unravels it becomes much more interesting and unique than that. The film is very mysterious at first and it unveils the new aspects of the story exceptionally well, knowing which characters Locke should talk to in order to unveil another layer of the story.
It wasn’t until I finished watching the film and checked the rest of the cast on IMDB that I realised the cast were all people I were a fan of, which to me as I didn’t recognise their voices, made their performances that much more impressive, we have; Olivia Coleman, Ruth Wilson, Andrew Scott, etc. The entire cast give fantastic performances but all are overshadowed by the powerhouse that is Tom Hardy, within the first 10 minutes I stopped seeing Hardy and just saw Locke, which is ever more impressive due to his sudden rise to stardom within the past few years.
The film was shot using only a handful of camera angles but the placement of the cameras just seems so natural that it really adds to the genuineness of the film. Also, some of the rolling shots of just the road are so well done that it is beautiful. The scenes that are interwoven or faded between each other are also very simple but also felt very genuine shots.
The script is fantastic, the dialogue is genuine and Tom Hardy is phenomenal, there is nothing else to say besides – Go and watch ‘Locke’.
8/10
