The Disappearance of Alice Creed
DIRECTED AND WRITTEN BY: J Blakeson, STARRING: Gemma Arterton, Martin Compston, Eddie Marsan, RUN TIME: 96 minutes, RELEASE: 2009
Two criminals, Vic (Eddie Marsan) and Danny (Martin Compston), kidnap Alice Creed (Gemma Arterton). They fastidiously set-up an apartment building and handcuff Alice to the bed, all in a careful attempt to make sure that she won't escape, and they won't get caught. But what do Vic and Danny really want with Alice? And is Alice cunning enough to foil their plans and escape?
Having never watched a trailer for this film, I really didn't know what to expect going in. All I knew for sure was that it is a kidnap film. Not much to go on, but enough to capture my interest. So, stumbling across it by chance on the television and having nothing better to do, I settled in.
The first thing I have to point out about The Disappearance of Alice Creed is that, aside from a small handful of scenes, it is mostly single-location based and takes place pretty much entirely within the confines of the flat that Alice has been taken to. For me as a viewer, I am always interested to see if this style works successfully in a film. To that end, it worked very well. It certainly adds to the claustrophobia of the subject and really allows the audience to be sucked in to the story. It's easier to relate to the character if it feels like you are trapped in there with them, and this film gives you that pretty well.
Secondly, there are only three characters throughout the entire film, which given the intimacy of the set-up is probably a wise decision; you don't want to make a film with such limited location focus and overcrowd it with irritatingly unnecessary characters. TDoAC uses exactly the right amount of characters that it needs to tell its story, and that's also where its strengths lie. Although the characters are not the most unique that have ever been written, the great casting distracts you from that fact quite nicely. Gemma Arterton was a great choice for the role of Alice. She brilliantly portrays the vulnerability and fear of the character, without ever making you feel like she is nothing more than a whimpering defenceless victim. I don't think there are many British actresses that could have played the part as well as she did. TDoAC also boasts the acting talents of Eddie Marsan and Martin Compston in the roles of kidnappers Vic and Danny (respectively). To be honest, I could have watched anyone in the role of Danny and not thought much of it. That's not saying that he wasn't great in the role, he was. However, it's Marsan that really steals the show between the two. That probably amounts to the fact that I just love to watch him in absolutely anything that he is in. Marsan is such a fantastic British actor and really grabs my attention every time that he is onscreen.
What impressed me with this film is that it wasn't ridiculously predictable. There are several nice little twists and character developments that I never saw coming. The dynamic of the trio doesn't just sit on three parallel tracks, but instead switches and shifts as the film progresses. That being said, it certainly wasn't without its flaws. There were still many dumb decision moments that had me tutting, sighing and talking at the television, but they weren't so bad that I couldn't bare to watch any more. Just minor niggles really that tend to crop up in most thrillers.
Overall, what could have been the same old rubbish that I have seen a hundred times before actually turned out to be a great little thriller. The story never descended into over-the-top stupidity and the script was pretty good, played out by a fine cast. TDoAC maintains the level of threat well without resorting to uncomfortable victim brutality, all leading to a satisfying climax.