Film Review: Hallow Road

Hallow Road is an interesting thriller. The reason why it is interesting? It is set almost entirely inside a car. This is a concept that has been explored in film before with one example being the Tom Hardy led drama film Locke, which was a gripping character study piece. Setting the film completely inside a car gives actors a chance to showcase their dialogue delivery as the performances are not as physical, with them being restrained to their seats for the majority of the runtime. Hallow Road has two key characters with Rosamund Pike and Matthew Rhys playing a couple who must travel to the titular Hallow Road where their daughter, Alice, has been in a car accident where a young woman might be dead.

Hallow Road excels itself in the tension that is built from the very beginning. We start off in an empty house and we see unfinished dinner plates left and broken glass on the floor, indicating an argument or something has occurred. We soon learn that parents Maddie and Frank had a big blow out with their daughter who left in her Dad’s car. They get a phone call with Alice in distress and then the clock starts ticking. Taking roughly an hour to travel to their destination they stay on the phone with Alice as secrets are uncovered, lies are told and their futures are all up in the air.

A lot of the credit goes to filmmaker Babak Anvari who is more used to the horror genre than the thriller genre. He plays into his strengths though at certain moments of the film where the music rises or a character learns something shocking and terror soon hits the characters. The film does dive into the horror genre a little but it feels like it just treads water. The key focus is getting the parents to the scene of the accident in time to help their daughter with the escalating situation. Twists and turns are abound and some smart camera trickery helps to keep audiences entertained by reminding us about the severity of the situation.

Rosamund Pike and Matthew Rhys are a compelling pair of actors who both give great performances. The anxiety, stress and fear they display feels real and relatable. The script isn’t the best with some padded elements thrown in and we don’t learn too much about Frank but we do get a lot of focus on Maddie and her history as a paramedic and the toll that has taken on her. The plot does dip and dive a few times and the ending is a bit too mysterious to be considered satisfactory and could have been handled differently. The themes and dynamics that the narrative play with however is what helps sell the film and keeps it engrossing from start to finish.

★★★☆☆

3/5

Final Verdict:

Hallow Road is a simple thriller about a couple of parents rushing to help aid their daughter who has been in a car accident. The emphasis is on character development and shock values which is helped with a tense script but lacks much depth. It helps that Pike and Rhys are compelling actors who are in their elements. They show every emotion as they race to the scene of the accident. It is a shame that the ending isn’t the best pay off and feels a little out of place in a film that is otherwise seen as engaging and dramatic.

Thanks for reading today’s blog!

Alex Murray, the Head of Eyesight Productions