Movie Night: Locked (2025)

With a clever premise and two powerhouse leads, “Locked” is a taut, claustrophobic thriller that explores power, privilege, and survival.

If you haven’t reached “I’ll see him in anything” status yet with one of the most versatile and consistently surprising actors of this generation, Bill Skarsgård, it simply means you need to see more of his films.

When you take as many big swings as he does, some swings inevitably miss. Still, he’s never uninteresting, never predictable, never anything other than mesmerizing—regardless of the strengths or failures of the scripts he’s working with.

A chameleon known for transforming into often unrecognizable monstrosities, his latest role has him playing the victim rather than the villain, a less-than-innocent but still sympathetic protagonist terrorized by a shadowy monster.

His tormentor is another screen legend known for iconic, scenery-chewing villainy: the legendary Anthony Hopkins.

For most of Locked, an American remake of a chilling Argentinian horror film 4×4, Hopkins is a faceless tormentor.

He looms unseen over his prey, controlling his destiny from afar.

A member of the wealthy elite, Hopkins plays William, the owner of a luxury SUV that Skarsgård’s Eddie was unfortunate enough to try to break into. This is no ordinary vehicle; it’s been specially designed to be impossible to break out of—complete with bulletproof glass.

Once inside what looked to be an easy score, Eddie becomes William’s prisoner.

Through remote technology, Williams creates an increasingly miserable environment, ensuring escape is impossible while playing cruel psychological mind games with Eddie via an in-car communication system.

Until the intense final act, it’s just Eddie struggling in a cramped stationary car with William’s cool but menacing voice repeatedly mocking Eddie’s predicament and casting judgment on poor lowlifes who think it’s ok to take from the wealthy.

That’s essentially the entire plot—an intriguing but threadbare premise.

It’s remarkable that such a simple, stripped-down scenario could have enough horsepower to sustain its 90-minute runtime.

To be fair,  your mileage is going to vary with this one. But the fact that it works at all entirely owed to the strength of these performances, especially the downright riveting Skarsgård, who must carry the bulk of the film on his shoulders.

We are forced to become captives alongside Eddie, experiencing the claustrophobic terror of his four-wheeled prison. It’s up to Skarsgård to ensure we feel and believe every minute of his harrowing ordeal as he faces an agonizingly slow torture.

Of course, it must go without saying that Hopkins is no slouch himself.

He takes such sadistic pleasure in prolonging Eddie’s pain and confusion, lording over him with gleeful contempt—claiming the moral high ground while condemning Eddie for every bad choice he’s ever made.

There’s an obvious social message, as the film explores the vast divide between the haves and the have-nots and exploits the way the wealthy so easily justify and get away with their crimes while the poor pay the ultimate price.

Their wealth insulates them and lets them act without impunity, punishing the desperate and unfortunate for the crime of being so damn desperate and unfortunate.

They hold all the cards and push all the buttons, always in the driver’s seat; the rest of us are just along for the ride, however perilous it may be.

There’s more than a hint of Lecter in Hopkins’ William, a man of great intelligence and calculating cruelty.

He’s a sociopath who delights in seeing Eddie suffer and preaches about goodness—even punishing him for swearing like the great arbitrator of morality—convinced he’s in the right.

There is a method to his madness, a trauma-based reason for his vengeance, which will slowly be revealed.

We also get some intriguing debate about the failures of the justice system to protect people from violent criminals juxtaposed against the shortcomings of the economic system to protect vulnerable people who sometimes break the law to survive.

Don’t worry; the esoteric conflict is kept to a minimum, with most of the film simply reveling in escalating tension and fast-paced action. Yet, there is enough substance to satisfy those looking for more depth in their survival thrillers.

Just when the film is in danger of becoming tedious and outstaying its welcome, director David Yarovesky (Brightburn) puts the film into overdrive.

He sets the car in motion and allows William to get up close and personal with his prey. The interplay between the two talented thespians is electric.

I mentioned earlier that your mileage would vary with this one, and that’s because not everything works.

While Eddie is given depth and complexity, William remains a one-note villain who, despite an intriguing backstory, is never made remotely sympathetic. There is not even a tinge of understanding for why he feels justified in his actions. He’s simply too over-the-top villainous with murky motives and a non-existent arc.

To be fair, William’s lack of relatable humanity is likely intentional, serving as a stark commentary on how privilege and classism cloud our perception and corrupt our moral code; William sees desperate criminals as vermin, undeserving of dignity, empathy, or second chances.

The message is powerful, but it’s far from richly explored.

The timely sociopolitical commentary is undoubtedly intriguing, but it feels too superficial for those craving more meat on the bones.

Locked also runs the risk of becoming tiresome quickly thanks to the film’s conceit that keeps all the action in a single, confined space with only one actor onscreen for most of the runtime.

Bill Skarsgård does a great job holding your attention and investing you in his plight, but the torture does become monotonous—there are only so many ways to terrorize someone in a locked car, and patience can wear thin.

With that said, Yarovesky succeeds at making the most of his premise and wringing every possible bit of tension out of the situation. I applaud the decision to keep this thriller throttling at a fast pace without letting it run too far on fumes.

Even at a lean 90 minutes, it feels long due to the limitations of the narrative.

But flaws aside, it’s admirable how much Yarovesky and his two powerhouse performers manage to make it work.