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Locke (15)

Drama, Thriller

A successful construction manager's life is drastically changed by a series of phone calls while he drives.


The critical consensus

High-concept but low-key, Locke may not be a wild ride but you won't be able to take your eyes off the road.

***(*)(*)Emma Simmonds, The List, 22/01/2014

Thanks to a mesmerising performance from Tom Hardy (the only actor to appear on screen) and an impressive script from writer-director Steven Knight, the film generates far more tension and intrigue than you might expect.

****(*)Stephen Carty, Flix Capacitor, 08/04/2014

There are films to see on huge screens, but this is one that almost cries out for a small cinema, surrounded by total blackness. It’s a daring experiment brilliantly executed, with Tom Hardy giving one of the performances of his career.

****(*)Olly Richards, Empire Online, 14/04/2014

As engrossing as any thriller, this quietly shattering character study, like Locke himself, achieves exactly what it sets out to, with the minimum of fuss.

****(*)Matt Glasby, Total Film, 14/04/2014

It’s a simple, clever idea, brilliantly executed and anchored around a superb performance from a softly-spoken Hardy. Are the foundations of Locke’s life sound enough to survive the night, or will he be left with nothing?

****(*)Henry Fitzherbert, Daily Express, 16/04/2014

At first I thought this might be a glorified radio play. Not a bit of it. You need to keep watching Hardy's face.

****(*)Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian, 17/04/2014

It is a clever device that doesn’t always work but it a terrific showcase for Hardy. His beautifully controlled performance captures all the turmoil of a man determined to do the right thing and only beginning to realise the sacrifice it demands.

***(*)(*)Allan Hunter, Daily Express, 18/04/2014

Locke is a bold, evocative film, in which voices, intonations and noises off – and a terrific unseen supporting cast – build up a detailed picture of a world and a man's life, as elegantly and economically as the best radio play. In this case, a radio play with orange motorway glare and the occasional passing Eddie Stobart truck.

****(*)Jonathan Romney, The Observer, 20/04/2014

The film could easily have seemed static and claustrophobic. That it doesn't is due not only to the extraordinary gravitas and pathos Hardy brings to his role but to the unlikely lyricism with which Locke's fraught night-time motorway journey is shot.

****(*)Geoffrey MacNab, The Independent, 17/04/2014

Hardy gives a fine, naturalistic performance, but the journey isn’t much more than a radio play with flashing indicators.

***(*)(*)Siobhan Synnot, The Scotsman, 13/04/2014


Features about Locke (15)

Where and when?

General release. Check local listings for show times.

Edinburgh Filmhouse, Edinburgh from Friday June 6, 2014, until Thursday June 12, 2014. More info: www.filmhousecinema.com

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