Trapped (2002) (Review)

Trapped was directed by Luis Mandoki. Translated in french into “Mauvais piège —> Bad trap ” ! An affluent young couple fight for their daughter’s life after she was kidnapped for ransom by an experienced gang of criminals.

I really enjoyed seeing this film. There are some exaggerations, but I’m still going to give it 5 stars.  There are also some long stretches towards the end, but that’s quickly made up for. All in all, the pace is good, the direction is good and the dialogue is interesting. I got what I really expected from a Thriller. No unbearable or gory scenes. No uncomfortable sex scenes. 

The cast is relatively solid, almost dreamlike. Charlize Theron, the actress who fears nothing, is in top form here, in the role of the kidnapped wife and mother. Kevin Bacon, again in the role of a merciless villain. It’s a good thing he’s played the good guys, especially in Mystic River and Flatliners. He was also fabulous in Death Sentence, as the completely destroyed avenger. Courtney Love plays the coolest criminal I’ve ever seen in a movie. Excellent role for her. 

Stuart Townsend is an actor who really comes into his own.  He’s already played opposite Charlize in the ultra-bad Æon Flux. But here, he’s in an excellent film. He’s terrifying and memorable in his horrible role as Dorian Gray in the fabulous “The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen”, a film I don’t really like, but I love nonetheless! Pruitt Taylor Vince played in Constantine. But he was also in JFK (1991), which I still haven’t seen.

He made an impression on me in Identity (2003) and is in the masterpiece Jacob’s Ladder (1990). The extraordinary Dakota Fanning plays the kidnapped child. She has rarely acted in bad films. Twilight must be one of her worst roles. Child Star is perfect, and having played Cherie Currie in The Runaways, I think I could forgive her for a lot of things. 

A thoroughly decent thriller for fans of the genre.  A film from the era when this kind of movie was often good, or at least interesting. It was a far cry from Netflix, Covid and lack of imagination. My rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐