Jodie Foster purchases a fancy new home, only to have thieves break in on her first night there. Luckily, the place comes equipped with an impenetrable "panic room" where she and her daughter can hide until the bad men go away. Of course, things don't end up being this straightforward.
The actors do a great job, there is much suspense to be had, and much pleasure to be derived from the resourcefulness of the characters. There are also some clumsily handled contrivances to be dealt with, and a camera with attention deficit disorder. Maybe director David Fincher was trying to make up for the fact that the action takes place in a restricted space, or maybe he had some visual tics left over from Fight Club. Whatever the case, there is no excuse for pointless, distracting, nakedly pretentious shots such as the one in which the camera appears to pass through the handle of a coffee pot.
The actors do a great job, there is much suspense to be had, and much pleasure to be derived from the resourcefulness of the characters. There are also some clumsily handled contrivances to be dealt with, and a camera with attention deficit disorder. Maybe director David Fincher was trying to make up for the fact that the action takes place in a restricted space, or maybe he had some visual tics left over from Fight Club. Whatever the case, there is no excuse for pointless, distracting, nakedly pretentious shots such as the one in which the camera appears to pass through the handle of a coffee pot.