Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Absolutely Fantastic

A waste of 90 minutes of my life

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

As this thriller opens two men meticulously preparing for a kidnapping. They soundproof and secure an empty flat before snatching their victim off the street, gagging and hooding her and taking her to the flat. The men are ex-cons Vic and Danny, she is the eponymous Alice Creed. Once they have her in the flat they chain her to a bed, cut her clothes off then take pictures of her. After putting new clothes on her they set about making their demands. They want two million pounds off her wealthy father and make it clear that if all their demands aren't met they will kill her. Inevitably tensions are high throughout and only get tenser as we learn more about the characters and their relationships.I've tried to keep spoilers to an absolute minimum as there are quite a few twists that benefit from knowing as little as possible; if possible even avoid watching the trailer as it gives away one of the twists. Thankfully all I knew about the film was what was written on the DVD box and that wasn't too much. Most of the film took place the confines of the flat but it still didn't feel theatrical rather than cinematic. The cast does a great job; Gemma Arterton does a brilliant job as Alice and Martin Compston and Eddie Marsan are great as Danny and Vic. As the end approaches things get so tense that I wondered if anybody would survive. Overall I'd certainly recommend this although it certainly won't be for everybody thanks to some fairly disturbing scenes.

It's a kind of tour de force for a crime thriller. Two men who are lovers, the young Martin Compston and the dominant older Eddie Marsan, kidnap the young woman who is the daughter of some filthy rich magnate and demand a quick ransom while they hold her captive -- shackled, hooded, and gagged with one of those BSM red balls -- in a shabby room.Those are the only three characters, and there are only two sets.It doesn't sound promising, does it? The girl, probably a virgin, screaming for help as the two brutes ravage her; the torment of the parents; the determination of the police; the recorded phone calls about the ransom; the argument about whether she should be left behind as a witness; bath tubs of gore.But no. The writers have squeezed every ounce of tension out of the story without abandoning those sparse assets. It answers interesting questions too. Suppose the bound, gagged, and hooded victim needs to use the toilet. One of the men brings her a bucket, but she signals frantically with her fingers -- number two. Can she "go" with some stranger watching her? Can't the stranger at least turn around? And when he does so, can't she whack him over the head with the empty bucket and grab his pistol? The answer is yes.Now the victim, Gemma Arterton, has the upper hand, but the second kidnapper may show up at any moment and -- well, what's a girl to do? Then, on top of that, the narrative gets more complicated, too complicated to explain. There are double crosses upon double crosses, so many that I forgot who was aligned with whom in the later intrigues.The script is fine for its genre, not poetic but effective. And the performances are of professional caliber. Gemma Arterton is attractive without being stunningly beautiful or so young as to invite the cheap sympathy we feel when a child is endangered. And she's no virgin either. She's wily as hell.In some ways the most sympathetic character is boyish Compston because he's the most naive. Everyone takes advantage of him despite (or because of) the fact that he's the only character who seems truly capable of love, even with reservations.The most impressive actor is Marsan. He's the authoritarian Loeb who orders Compston's Leopold around. And Marsan's appearance is striking. His forehead is slanted back and his features protrude at odd angles from his skull. He looks like he's wearing a fire plug on his shoulders.All of them prove themselves capable murder and, in the end, they've all demonstrated their capacity for taking the money and running away with it.It's a little like "Dial M For Murder," but more violent and less witty. None of the villains are nearly as suave and good-natured as Ray Milland. And the music here practically spells out "gravitas." There's not a smile in a cartload but it's precisely done.

But I didn't expect a good, tense film to break out. I figured this would just be some trash straight to DVD film, that I just skim through, laugh at the ridiculous stuff, see Gemma and call it a day.But right from the opening shot it was a lot better than I thought it'd be. It was tense and menacing and all without a word being spoken. It didn't get as ugly as I was afraid it would from the opening, but it got a lot more interesting. I kept thinking I knew what type of story they were telling and they kept surprising me.All 3 gave great performances, and I liked that it was only the 3 of them the whole time. Well written, well shot, well acted and I liked the ending...especially with the clever credit. It's much better than the sum of Gemma's bits, and that's saying a lot.

I had no idea about this movie until I watched it, had never read a review nor knew anything about the plot, the characters or the actors playing them. I came to it with no expectations. But, boy am I glad I watched it now!The first 5 minutes of the film are virtually silent, there is no dialogue at least, as the "perps" go about there mission of acquiring the equipment required and setting up there lair. The first human sounds we hear are the screams of there victim, Alice Creed, as they drag her into the back of there stolen van. Cut to the pre-prepared apartment and the victim is seen, still kicking and screaming, being tied to a bed and her clothes cut from here, her hood is then removed and photos are taken. ( what a brave performance by Gemma Arterton ) Only then is she clothed once more by her captors. The whole manor in which the operation is carried out is one of well practised calm, almost like nurses dealing with an agitated patient, and this makes there actions all the more chilling.Its a truly great start to a movie, which then builds tension steadily throughout. There are many plot twists, some are a bit obvious, others are truly surprising and you are kept guessing until the very end.Some reviewers have criticised the plot as being contrived, others have questioned the characters actions in certain situations, others have said that the world outside the 3 characters should have been explored, the police an the father should have been involved etc. Others have questioned the UKs mobile phone network. Well, I'm sorry people but if you let this type of nit picking criticism detract from your enjoyment of a fabulously entertaining movie then more fool you.If on the other hand you can put your hyper critical mind on hold for 90 minutes then you are in for a treat.