The Disappearance of Alice Creed (Review)

“The Disappearance of Alice Creed” was written and directed by J. Blakeson. The movie was released in 2009, which is a crime and thriller film about two British men who set up an apartment so that it can be presented as a prison for a woman that they kidnap. This thriller film is a three-character film that takes place in one location, which never fails to set a very tense atmosphere.

Two men who conduct a plan to receive 2 million dollars kidnap Alice (Gemma Arterton), the daughter of a very wealthy businessman. Vic (Eddie Marsan) mainly thought of the plan the older male kidnapper; he planned the entire process while he was in prison.

The environment was very calm and stable it seemed to me like a perfect mood setter especially with the music, (by Marc Canham) to me it felt like drama was about to happen because although the music was low it was still tense and had that vibe where something was about to happen. 

In the beginning of the film two of main characters Vic and Danny (Martin Compston) focus on setting up the environment in which they will keep the prisoner. There are a lot of close-up and extreme close up shots that really show the very descriptive and detailed scenes of the preparations of creating the environment and setting the mood of tense and drama. To me I felt as though the shots were positioned very well and the lighting of the area showed and expressed a very dramatic shot and scene. Most of the shots were focused on Vic or Danny preparing the room. The lighting of the shots showed and dramatized very simple basic scenes such as placing a cover over the window or nailing in nails to the ground to keep the bed I place, which Alice will be tied to. A lot of the shots change into mid shots, wide shots and many other shots throughout the film. I think that many of the shots in the beginning of the film show and set the environment and the entire setting of the movie. The very first scenes show and produce the Mis-en-Scene. Where many props and costumes were used throughout for the two kidnappers they both used different costumes throughout to show how professional they are they knew what they were doing and they understood the entire process well because Vic had been planning for this for years while he was in prison. The different outfits that were used were so that no evidence would come up if Alice escaped from them, no proof would be valid. I think that this process and this strategy in particular shows how much effort the characters put into this plan how much time they thought about it.

I believe that Vic’s character in particular shows how strong and confident he is because his character shows how determined and driven he is to get what he wants and in this case he wants 2 million dollars. Danny’s character is a bit more weak and scared of Vic because he is older and seems more powerful Danny enjoys being pushed around by him but at times is a little on edge and doesn’t enjoy being told what to do. There are several scenes in the film where he snaps and can’t really handle the pushing the around. One scene being where Danny says that he isn’t hungry and Vic forces him to eat something. Vic shoves food into Danny’s mouth and Danny gets upset but still feels at a weak state. One other scene where Danny feels like he should be controlled is towards the end after Alice and Vic have a conversation about how Danny really his, he’s playing for both teams. Danny’s character knows Alice because she is his girlfriend and she starts to play along with the kidnapping game in order to get money out of it, she made a deal with Danny. Alice ends up turning on Danny and tries to escape but fails when Danny knocks her out. Later on Vic and Danny have sexual encounter that shows that they are both homosexuals. Danny’s character is hard to figure out he is hard to read and at times you will never know what he is going to do. Alice’s character shows weaknesses and strengths, she is weak in the beginning when she is first kidnapped because she has no idea who the men are that kidnapped her but gets used to them and becomes stronger about herself. She breaks down when Danny puts a knife to her throat to force her to say some words to her father in a video and then is tied up again. Alice’s character then changes when Danny reveals himself to her after she has him at gunpoint. She becomes strong because now she’s confident on who one of the kidnappers is. She is actually smarter and more focused on her life rather then the deal she made with Danny to get her father’s money. She can’t really trust anyone but herself she is focused on her life and is determined to do whatever it takes to get free even if it means to betray Danny.

The dialogue in the film tells a lot about characters it gives the right amount of information that is needed in order to create the scene and to create the mood. Each character form the movie expressed themselves and proved how they really are rather it was scared yet strong like Alice or strong and confident like Vic or weak and crazy like Danny. The dialogues expressed all of their attitudes. They all presented themselves in a certain way that showed how they truly are. Several scenes had dialogue and music playing in the background to the point where they tried to make the scene more believable. One scene that expressed this was when Vic and Alice were talking about Danny and how he betrayed both of them. The music sets the scene and makes it dramatic and very tense.

There were several scenes with narration in it from one character to another between Vic and Danny you seen this a lot because Danny was always hiding something from Vic and Vic was getting curious so he checked in on him. I think that it would have been more interesting if there were some narration with Alice getting the mouth gaud off her mouth and speaking through the door to Danny and Vic it would of made the film more intense.

Throughout the movie there were many scenes where the lighting, the color of the environment was dull to set the mood of two crazy men getting what they want by taking a girl. I think that the editing was well done but I do want to recommend one scene in the beginning where the first kidnap Alice, maybe there could have been more to it. The director could have showed how she was kidnapped rather then having a fade in and fade out black. I think that the entire process of the storyline would click a little better if this one scene were to be put in the film.

I would rate this movie about 7/10 because throughout the film I saw various things I felt could have been improved or added in. One scene in the beginning, with Alice getting kidnapped could have been improved. Possibly could have added in more about Vic and how he went out to set different hints on the plan at hand. Maybe we could have seen the process through his eyes outside the doors of the apartment.

Act I- Set Up

The environment is set-up and provides close ups on the preparations on the area where the prisoner will be.

Plot Point 1:

In need of a hero Alice is in desperate need of help because she is taken hostage by two men and no one hears her plea.

Act II- Confrontation

Alice figures out one of her kidnappers, is her boyfriend Danny.

Plot Point 2:

Alice has him at gunpoint.

Act III- Resolution

Alice tells Vic about Danny and her Vic gets upset and comes up with a plan of his own to try and kill Danny but it doesn’t work because Danny escapes.

Plot Point 3:

After Danny escapes Vic escapes to the new area where they placed Alice and takes the money and tries to leave in a get away car. It doesn’t work because Danny shows up and kills Vic and leaves Alice there handcuffed and alone.

Aftermath

Alice is left in the new environment alone with Vic’s dead body next to her. Before Vic dies he passes Alice the keys so she can escape.

Plot Point 4:

Alice escapes with the money because she later walks down the road after she escapes and finds Danny dead in the car with a bag of money next to him. She is relieved she is safe, alive and free.