So I watched Locke…

I walked into this movie with no expectations and zero knowledge about the plot. Wasn’t even planning on watching a movie but had some time to kill and the cinema was right there. I’m glad I had time to kill or else I might have missed this gem.

Okay basic plot: Tom Hardy is Ivan Locke, a straight-laced, by-the-book family man. Locke finds out that the woman he had an affair with a few months ago has gone into labour and he has to drive to the hospital. During this drive he has to explain the situation to his wife (who had no knowledge of the affair prior to this night) whilst managing the biggest work assignment of his life.

Yes, the whole movie is set in a car and the only person you ever see is Tom Hardy. You hear the voices of the various people he calls but you only ever see him. It’s such a novel idea for a movie and is more entertaining and gripping than you might initially think. Tom Hardy is everything in this movie, LITERALLY!! Even though you can hear the other people’s voices and their reactions, the story pivots on the emotion that Tom Hardy provides.

The character of Locke is that of a silent man, a solid rock who doesn’t show much emotion so you think it would be difficult to not only connect to him but for him to control the emotional pace of the movie as he does. But Hardy finds a way to convey a broad emotional spectrum with just gestures and tone. It’s a true exhibition of his acting talents. A lesser actor and you would have left the cinema complaining about the lack of characters on screen. I can’t say enough about how amazing he is in this role. Pure magic.

The story is also very engaging. This man who is thought of as a saint and stable by so many is having an illegitimate child and bails on this huge work project that leads to him being fired. I’m sure we’ve all had moments where we make monumental mistakes that are totally out of character and this helps you further connect with the character and his struggle. His life is literally crumbling around him. His wife hates him, he’s having a baby with a woman who he hardly knows and doesn’t love and he’s lost a career his worked so hard to build. It’s horrible for him but super fun to watch.

This is really one of those artsy movies that is really about the art of film and because of this won’t receive the praise it deserves but it is definitely worth a watch. Take some time out and enjoy. 7/10