Mantrap

A common premise for short film is to take an idea and subvert it. The success of the end result, however, often depends not on how good the idea is, but on how well it is executed.

Mantrap is based on a good idea. A businessman is heading home to his pregnant wife, he steps into a lift with a hoodie-wearing courier. They exchange pleasantries as the ride begins until the lift becomes stuck between floors. Then something more sinsiter begins to happen.

Despite this good idea, however, the film fails to take it to what should have been a gripping conclusion. Although things start well, with neat camera angles - our men are shot in close up and from above in turns, everything peters out rather than building up.

It may have been the fact I watched this on a small screen, that made this film lose some of its punch but, for me, everything was just too dark which made things confusing - and not in a good way.

While this film is by no means a failure - the direction certainly showed lots of promise - in the end there is simply too much made of too little. A beefier plot line and snappier script would have made this a much better movie.