Detained

Which is the hardest part of the long con: keeping everyone believing your lie, or remembering what was true in the first place?  Both Rebecca Kamen (Cornish) and co-writer/director Felipe Mucci have the same problem, stuck in dizzying web of deceit so labyrinthine they themselves may have forgotten what their original truth was.  Strong performances and committed actors make the most of a script which is more focused on twists and turns than internal logic despite being locked almost entirely in one location.  Who is conning who and what do they want?  Is it money?  A baby?  A confession.  We may never know.

We do know, probably, that Rebecca, arrested in conjunction with a hit and run, will do anything to avoid going to jail or even being arraigned including threats, bribery and murder of her own.  What seems like a routine bit of interrogation quickly turns on its head when convict gets their hands on a weapon and shoots one of the arresting officers (Bloodgood), offering Rebecca an opening for escape.  Has she gotten incredibly lucky, incredibly unlucky or is something more sinister at work?

Trapped room films need strong performers and strong characters, usually with clear backgrounds slowly unfurling as we delve into what has locked everyone up together.  (See for example, Branagh’s three recent Agatha Christie locked door adaptations, mysteries that exist to explain who its characters are and eventually the detective as well).  Con artist stories, on the other hand, try to guard and hide its characters as much as possible in order to preserve twists and turns and not always to the benefit of logic and coherence.  They are at direct odds with each other.  That constant tension both drives Detained forward and keeps trying to tear it apart.

If it didn’t have as good a cast as it does, Detained might fly to pieces under the strain.  As it is, Cornish holds sway bouncing with chaotic energy from victim to victor depending on the need of the scene and twists still needing to be revealed.  It is a high wire act and a testament that she balances it so well, but also says something about the story she’s been thrown into.  Bloodgood and Alonzo (a pair of not-cops on a time limit to extort money from her) play foil as much as they can but also have to balance their intentions with hidden motivations that warp and change like a chameleon.

Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t.  The constraints of the single room, often an enhancement for character study, work against the confidence game.  Mucci works hard to keep the tension going with lots of ball juggling and twists and turns.  The more you let it wash over you without thinking it through the better it gets.  Like the faux-police station Rebecca finds herself in, too much attention exposes the cracks and flaws in the façade.  The game is to keep anyone from being able to think, before the time runs out.

Perhaps if it were more of a straightforward character drama as interrogation scene or a completely free-wheeling long con it could work better.  The pieces are all there for either version, but together they get in each other’s way.  A strong cast keeps it working, perhaps better than it should.  The next time out, with a more singular focus, could be something special.

6 out of 10. Starring Abbie Cornish, Laz Alonso, Moon Bloodgood, John Patrick Amedori and Justin H. Min. Directed by Felipe Mucci.