Blackout (IV) (2008)

Three people from different walks of life find themselves trapped inside a stalled elevator. What at first seems like an inconvenience rapidly escalates into a nightmare.

Director:

Rigoberto Castañeda

Writer:

Ed Dougherty (screenplay)

Stars:

Amber Tamblyn, Aidan Gillen, Armie Hammer

Cast

Credited cast:
Amber Tamblyn	...	Claudia
Aidan Gillen	...	Karl
Armie Hammer	...	Tommy
Katie Stuart	...	Francesca
Alvaro Roque	...	Boy in Yellow Boots
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jim Arnold	...	Homeless man
Claudia Bassols	...	Pretty Woman
Peggy Batchelor	...	Allison
Rubén Castro	...	Maintenance Man
Leslie Charles
Kate Jennings Grant	...	Sister-in-law
Erin Guzowski	...	Karl's Wife
Luana Lauverski	...	Nurse
Beatriz Martínez	...	Young Claudia
Jane Partridge	...	Chloe

Storyline

Three people from different walks of life find themselves trapped inside a stalled elevator. What at first seems like an inconvenience rapidly escalates into a nightmare.

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Plot Keywords:

elevator | falling from height | broken leg | marco polo | maniac | 

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Taglines:

Hope is not on the way

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Genres:

Crime | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sadistic bloody violence including a rape, nudity and language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

29 May 2008 (Russia)

Also Known As:

Atrapados

Filming Locations:

Barcelona, Cataluña, Spain

Company Credits

Production Co:

Morabito Picture Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min 120 min (European Film Market) 81 min (PAL DVD) 85 min (DVD release)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

In the scene just before Tommy meets Francesca's father for the first time, he dresses himself sitting in the bed. You see him putting on a t-shirt, in the next shot the shirt is suddenly gone, then it's back on again.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Karl: There is no chance. No destiny. No fate. There's only what you take from the world. And what the world takes from you.

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Connections

References Lord of the Flies (1963)

User Reviews

Great Low-Budget Psychological Thriller

'Blackout' is one of those obscure little multinational affairs that can either be jaw-droppingly bad or a rare unearthed gem - happily, it's the latter. Three characters are trapped overnight in a stalled elevator, bickering and bitching as they try and find a way out while thinking back to the sequence of events that led them there. These 'Lost'-style flashbacks eventually reveal that one of their number is a vicious sociopath.

It's clear that Mexican director Castaneda is influenced more by the character driven horror of the sixties and seventies than by vapid eighties slashers, but his interest in people shouldn't be mistaken for squeamishness when it comes to ugly sexual violence - it's been a long time since I wanted to see a bad guy get what he deserves as much as I did watching 'Blackout'. Castaneda uses more than a few moves from the David Fincher play-book, with the camera squeezing through keyholes and cracks and plummeting down elevator shafts, and the whole thing is beautifully photographed, belying what was in truth a meager budget of only $4 million. A great psychological thriller from a director who deserves success.