Any director bold enough to take on a film set
in a single location should be commended, especially one essentially relying on
a single actor to carry the narrative. Mercy Road follows in the
tradition of movies like Locke or Buried, where an isolated
character only has conversations on a cell phone to propel the plot forward.
Unfortunately, while director John Curran may have been daring enough to
attempt a similar feat, the filmmaking does not match his ambition.
Just like Locke,
Mercy Road is set almost entirely in a vehicle on the road, though it
doesn’t have the advantage of Tom Hardy carrying the film. Beginning
immediately after an unexplained and unseen violent incident, a frantic father
named Tom (Luke Bracey) gets in his car and flees the location. While his
direction is unclear, it slowly becomes apparent that his daughter Ruby (Martha
Kate Morgan) may be in some sort of danger. The incident Tom is fleeing from is
a violent reaction to a possible assault carried out against her, and he begins
receiving calls on his cell phone from the authorities regarding his
involvement.
Tom also begins
receiving calls from a stranger calling himself “The Associate” (Toby Jones),
who has an unbelievable amount of knowledge about the events, while also
claiming to have kidnapped Ruby. Tom is instructed to follow all The
Associate’s instructions if he wants to protect Ruby, even as they become
increasingly erratic. While Tom digs himself into more trouble with law
enforcement as he attempts to save his daughter, questions about his sanity are
raised.
Despite the
simplicity of the storyline, Mercy Road refuses to answer simple
questions about what is real. Whether there is a supernatural element involved
or Tom is simply an unreliable narrator who is losing his mind is unclear, apart
from a few possible clues in the final moments. This ambiguity may be
off-putting for viewers expecting a more traditional narrative. On the other
hand, those cinephiles more accustomed to this approach are likely to be turned
off by the film’s sloppy visual effects. Nearly all external images of the
environment and moving car are created with computer generated imagery. While
the opening title sequence implies this is an intentional stylized approach
meant to recall B-films from cinema’s past, this is abandoned before long and
begins to feel like budgetary constraints rather than artistic choices.
The
high-definition presentation of the Blu-ray release does little to enhance the
low budget visuals, and there are no special features offered on the disc. The
only extras to be found are an optional Spanish-language dubbing and subtitles
in both English and Spanish.
Entertainment Value:
3/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: 3.5/10
Historical
Significance: 1/10
Special Features: 0/10
2 comments:
I struggle to watch a film like this where I stare at a character that is busy talking through a phone the whole time. Thanks for review.
At times the acting was hard to watch without giggling. Pretty lame ending
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