The Disappearance Of Alice Creed
Sunday 2nd May 2010, 8:58AM BST.
A young woman faces a terrifying ordeal in J Blakeson’s accomplished feature directorial debut.
The Disappearance Of Alice Creed is an edge of seat thriller that by its simple design – three characters trapped predominantly in one location – could easily have started life on the stage.
The film even adopts a classic three act structure, bookmarked by twists that force us to re-evaluate the fragile balance of power.
The intimacy of the set-up works in the film’s favour, forcing Blakeson to develop his protagonists to sustain our interest and the dramatic momentum.
However, the writer-director engineers one hairpin twists too many with a big reveal that sits awkwardly between unintentional hilarity and implausibility.
Blakeson opens with a gripping, dialogue-free sequence of pals Vic (Eddie Marsan) and Danny (Martin Compston) preparing a van and a flat for the arrival of their victim.
‘Okay,’ growls Vic and the two men drag Alice (Gemma Arterton) off the street, tie her up in the back of the van and then transfer her kicking and whimpering to the specially outfitted flat, which has been soundproofed to prevent neighbours hearing her screams for help.
Bound at the ankles and wrists to a bed, Alice lies trembling at the mercy of her captors, unable to fathom why she has been kidnapped.
It transpires that Vic and Danny are holding her for ransom – a cool
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