When COVID-19 first forced the lockdown of my area, my fiancée and I took a moment to reflect on the matter at hand, thousands – if not millions – of individuals stuck within their homes, abiding by regulations and attempting to ride out the storm. And not only were they stuck in one place, but you were also locked down with who you were locked down with. Lover, friend, or family, you were with who you were going to be with. And while it only appeared to be for two weeks in the beginning, it became quickly apparent it would be for much, much longer.
HBO’s original film Locked Down, from director Doug Liman, piggybacks on the idea of lockdown, not only in the sense of a response to an unknown disease but also in the wake of who we are now quarantined with. Two former lovers, who had just begun to part ways, are now locked down together, unable to escape and unable to move forward. Like what much of the world has felt in their own perspectives this year, time came to a standstill, and pieces in the game of life immovable. What Locked Down does successfully is not only capture a moment in the history of mankind but also finds a way to shape it into a once in a lifetime heist drama.
Linda (Anne Hathaway) and Paxton (Chiwetel Ejiofor) find their break up put on pause when London is thrown into a strict lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While they float through the apartment, avoiding each other as much as possible, they find complete avoidance is impossible. With mutual friends and jobs that potentially cross paths, there is nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. There is still love between them, yet an overarching need to move forward – however may will look.
Yet, while each seems to pull away from the other, they are each suffering in silence, their distance and the lockdown rendering them in a constant state of loneliness and despair. Paxton is unsure of how he can change the past to improve his future, his criminal history preventing him from acquiring anything better than he already has – and the current state of affairs preventing him from even trying. Linda is grappling with her moral conscious, a recent promotion revealing the inner workings of the company she tried so hard to climb the ladder for.
Yet, as the two begin to navigate into each other’s space, opening themselves once again to the possibility of each other and the security of their future (whether it be together or apart), they find their crossing paths may present them with the opportunity of a lifetime. But can they go through with it?
Bringing lockdown back to life
Locked Down is a film that will not initially entice an audience, primarily due to its setting and time. For many, it is to much too soon. For others, especially given the chance, there is a certain level of nostalgia that is achieved, a recognition of what has passed and where we are now. Sirens can be heard in the distance, Purell liters the table, and the clanking of pots and pans to thank healthcare works will put not only the past into perspective but present time as well.
And while I will talk about the nostalgia felt in a moment, there is a resonating feeling that comes from Locked Down that works as its own catharsis. For many, TikTok, Zoom, and FaceTime became our only means to community and see family and friends. Through these various forms, there was a light that shown into the solidarity and loneliness of quarantine. You were not alone. Locked Down captures this ability of humans to modify and still maintain relationships. Linda speaks to the women in the window across the way, Paxton reads poetry to everyone in the street. There is a feeling Linda and Paxton are able to hold on to that they are not truly alone – and for viewers, it is another opportunity to feel the same. Many of the feelings they express are ones we all have had at various points in time.
While Hathaway and Ejiofor each deliver solid and relatable performances, they are not the stars of the film. It is the recreation of the world they are immersed in and the intentionally placed aspects of a global pandemic that truly shown. From script to mise-en-scéne, wardrobe to editing – Locked Down excels.
The Nostalgia of a Pandemic
Who would have ever thought nostalgia could be experienced in such a difficult time. Though it was hard not to feel the familiarity of Locked Down as it brought me back into the first two weeks of quarantine. And this extended to both scenery and dialogue. It almost became a kind of scavenger hunt – how many elements of quarantine can you spot?
Learning to make bread and picking up flour from the store was a common thread throughout the storyline, yet one that is too easily reminiscent for many. The exodus of residents from big cities into suburbia was acknowledged, Ben Stiller’s Guy commenting on how he had moved from Chicago to Vermont and the kids are “loving it” (they are clearly not, however, as his son makes humorously apparent in almost a TikTok feel).
Items litter the screen at various times, a 2020 calendar used as scrap paper, toilet paper purchased in large quantities, masks worn over the mouth but not the nose, food delivery, the TV announcing Boris Johnson had been admitted to the hospital, and pajama bottoms worn beneath formal workwear. There is so much to fill the screen and clearly indicate where in the pandemic this film is situated.
Locked Down also finds its nostalgia in the dragging feel of the film paralleling the drawn-out feeling of lockdown itself. While this is the biggest complaint I had with the film, there is an undeniably authentic feel it provides. What seems to be the course of two weeks in the film, feels like months – even a lifetime. And here, this almost 2-hour film feels like an epic. The pace did not work for me, but it does work for the story itself.
Conclusion: Locked Down
Now, while most of the film immerses itself within the pandemic environment to examine the relationship of Paxton and Linda, it also evolves into a high stakes heist film that ends on the idea of anarchy and freedom. Here are these two individuals locked in a home for what was intended to be two weeks, who are left with nothing but their thoughts to fill their time. Guilt for the past, fear of the future, and an inability to escape where the mind wanders gives way to thoughts, and even courage, that may never have existed before. There are no distractions, only time. For some, this can be terrifying, for others, liberating.
There is also the anarchy of breaking free. In the state of disorder that the pandemic has left many in, there is a reconsideration of authority. And not just those imposing the restrictions, but in ourselves. What authority did we allow ourselves, and what authority do we truly believe we have. As we ruminate on ourselves, past and present, there is a break down of what we may have once believed to be vital, breaking down the importance of previous perspectives while also taking the time to reexamine and rise up the perspectives of others.
Locked Down was definitely a surprise success, while one I am not sure I would want to experience again (as the effect may be rendered differently on a second watch) it is one I would definitely recommend.
Have you seen Locked Down? What did you think? Let us know in the comments below!
Locked Down is currently streaming on HBO Max.
Watch Locked Down
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