Rating: 
Summary: Surprisingly Bland
Review: I was surprised that David Fincher directed this film. After such an incredible film like Fight Club, I don't know why he would even glance at a script as dull and unlikely as this one. Even more shocking was that Jodie Foster pried herself out of the director's chair to act in a movie that wasn't powerful or thought provoking in any way. There weren't even any striking special effects to keep me mildly amused. It's not the worst movie ever made, but it's certainly not the best either.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't Panic!... Get Clever.
Review: There are very few films where your mind is racing to work out what's going to happen next. Panic Room does this cleverly. The film engages the viewer and makes them think about what they've just seen. It doesn't just come right out and explain everything to the viewer. The film challenges its viewers to pay attention and realize the significance of what they saw.
An example is the shot of the daughter's Refrigerator in her rooom. If you're clever and paying atttention you immediately undertstand it's significance. It may become clear when Jody warns her daughter not to get too excited. Or later notice the daughter's unusual "watch". More clues when her daughter warns her mom she's getting hungry...
Finally, the fridge's significance finally dawns when Jody frantically looks through the boxes after the daughter's watch has gone off. Ok, so the viewer's suspension of disbelief kinda dips when Jody reaches in the vent for the telephone wire and it's marked right there inside the vent. Would a phone line really be marked there? And all that work Jody does to get back to the refrigerator and she gets the wrong item but the movie makes it out to be the correct one. But the rest of the movie is so good it doesn't detract from the film's enjoyment even if it is noticed. The shot of jody crying in the tub and gulping down a huge glass of wine. The shot of the key in the front door going in and then out. No explainations or dialogue. Just shots of things that actually mean something significant to the story telling. The cinematography is likewise clever. The shot of the camera going through the kitchen table, the floor, the vents are just ways the film's technology frees itself from the fixed camera (much as the director of the Matrix proclaimed it would). It's just another enjoyable element in the film and more importantly, it still serves as a purpose to the story telling (unlike the Matrix, whose cinematography was mainly about oohs and ahhs). All in all Panic Room's a blast. It's clever, and keeps you on your toes right up to the end.
Rating: 
Summary: Panic Room-One of Foster's Best
Review: Panic Room, was an interesting thriller with good action, a simple plot and some nice characters. Jodie Foster, lives in New York with her daugther, played by Kristen Stewart. Recently, Foster's charcter moved into a new house with her daughter, she is divorced. The move to a pleasant town house. But in this house, there is a room called a "panic room." These room has multiple features, a steel door, a phone with a seperate phone line and a camera system, with surveillance that covers the entire house. Quite impressive. Soon, a trio of robbers move in the house, and want to get to the "panic room," because there is something there of great value to them. They are unaware of the people who are living in the house, and soon the situation becomes quite drastic. This film is well crafted and works very well on its own terms. Director David Fincher uses amazing CGI camera work to get good shots of the house and inside the house. Panic Room is rated R for Violence and Language, so not the best choice for younger children. Forest Whitaker, Jared Leto and Dwight Yoakam are the robbers. Good acting and action, make this an entertaining, suspense thriller.
Rating:
Summary: Time To Panic
Review: Claustrophobic. That's one way of describing this one set thriller. I wasn't a huge fan of director David Fincher at all when he first came out. Didn't like "Alien 3", "Seven", or "Fight Club". Things changed when I saw "The Game". And now, there is this. "Panic Room" is a fine, stylish, suspenseful thriller that is worthy of your night's entertainment. All future thrillers should take note of David Fincher's(and M. Night Shyamalan's)work. Jodie Foster stars as Meg Altman, a single mom with a young daughter named Sarah(Kristen Stewart,who I originally thought was a boy when I first saw the trailer for this. Woops.). She and her daughter move into a spacious new place in Manhattan. The place is gigantic. Through the tour, they learn of a secret room in the main bedroom called a 'panic room'. It's a safe place to go too when someone breaks into your house, or to keep things. The girls' first night in the new house is interrupted by the intrusion of three burglars. The three are expertly played by Forrest Whitaker, Jared Leto, and country superstar Dwight Yoakam. Meg discovers them and her and Sarah race to the panic room just in time. The two females are not out of harm's way because what the burglars want is in that very room. Meg and Sarah try to think of everything they can do to get help, and to keep the burglars from somehow getting into the room. The camera work is absolutely amazing. Right from the beginning of the film where you see the opening credits look as if they were part of the New York landscape, you know this movie is going to be interesting. Not to mention look interesting. The wonderful camera work continues through the rest of the film. It passes through walls, floors, keyholes, drain pipes, lightbulbs. It looks amazing. The screenplay by David Koepp is sharp and tight and never wanders. Keeps it real. The mood and setting is supposed to be dark, like most Fincher works, and this one is no different. The setting is part of the cast in a way and Fincher knows how to film it. The actors are all great. Jodie Foster proves once again why she is one of our best, most versatile actresses, and why we like and respect her so much. Plus, she looks amazing in this. Kristen Stewart, as Sarah, was pitch perfect casting. She looks like she could actually be Jodie's daughter. She is real. Very natural. Our three burglars are just as good. No one will look at Dwight Yoakam the same way ever again after this. He's mean, nasty, and creepy as hell. You won't be able to listen to "Guitars And Cadillacs" again without picturing him with a sledge hammer. Jared Leto sprouts corn rows here and it isn't pretty. He's the lesser of the two, but he still does an admirable job. Forrest Whitaker is his usual solid self. And, of course, there always seems to be a nicer one in a trio of bad guys. This is one of the better thrillers I've seen in a long time. It plays this drama out in front of you and feel like you are a part of it. It completely sucks you in and you are there for the rest of the ride. I love movies, and thrillers, like this. When you turn off your lights and decide to go to bed, make sure you lock your doors and windows. You never know. You just never know.
Rating: 
Summary: A good movie, but not a keeper
Review: My opinion, as a review should be, is that this moveie should be rented. I bought it for several reasons....
1)The Game and Fight Club are by the same director and I own them as well. Both are among my top 5 movies...
2)This movie was originally released as a superbit release
3)All these reviews giving the movie a 4 or 5 star rating.
Unfortunately, I just had a slew of people over to view it in DTS on a big screen WEGA TV and it was lacking alot of what I saw in Fight Club and The Game. The movie was not a suspense film. When compared the Signs and the Sixth Sense, I would almost say there was no suspense at all. I recognize the movie as a thriller. The forever passionate Jodie Foster did have her moments in the film, but the score didn't seem matched with the acting. It's like the composer wasn't even watching the movie while they were recording. There were alot of inconsistencies in the film. While it was noted in several scenes how much noise a footstep made in a largely empty wooden house, there were other scenes where a burgler would drop a heavy object or bag and no one heard it. I mean Jodie's awake, lying in bed and there isn't any other noise at all. At least a thud would be heard a few floors up, let alone the sound of normal and slightly raised conversation. ...In the end, it was agreed upon that the great film we bought before renting wasn't that great ...Hope that helps some of you out there who are Superbit supporters as well as Fincher. Almost forgot....the case was definately substandard.
Rating: 
Summary: HOME ALONE
Review: Take the movie HOME ALONE and replace Macaulay Culkin with Jodie Foster and you get PANIC ROOM. This movie is so riddled with plot holes and unrealistic behavior from the characters that it quickly turns into a bad comedy. In fact, I found Joe Pesci to be more menacing in HOME ALONE then I did the three bumbling clowns who torment Jodie Foster in this non-thriller. Jodie, please, you're a great actress. But your last couple of movies were complete duds. Do yourself a favor and pick some better scripts girl. You're striking out.
Rating:
Summary: A frightening possibility....
Review: Jody Foster stars as a recently divorced mother who moves into a large Manhattan apartment that has all of the amenities, including a "panic room" which has its own electricity, phone, food storage, etc. It is surrounded by thick concrete walls that are steel reinforced. The panic room is designed to be a place of refuge in the event the house is broken into. As luck would have it, their apartment is broken into on the first night Jody Foster and her daughter are in the apartment buy three men looking for bearer bonds left behind by the previous owner. Naturally, it turns out that the bearer bonds are hidden in a secret safe in the panic room. The story quickly turns into a cat and mouse game as the thieves try to coax the two women out of the panic room. The best part of the film is the camera trickery involving shots that go through locks, walls, floors, etc. This is probably not a movie to watch on a dark night by yourself, but it is very well done and will keep you on edge.
Rating:
Summary: Mediocre plot...less than convincing acting.
Review: I must admit, when my girlfriend told me about this new movie "Panic Room", I was fairly excited about seeing it. I guess there is just something about the name that sparks interest. Don't fall for this. I am taking this opportunity to lower your expectations of this movie in hopes that if and when you see this movie, you may be able to salvage your viewing experience. Panic Room begins with a mother (Jodie Foster) and her daughter hunting for a new apartment as the product of a recent divorce. They are reeled into buying the townhouse that becomes the center of the movies' attention. Along with an extensive security system, this house also comes equiped with it's very own "panic room"...a highly sucure room used in cases of emergency. To make a long story short, some burglars break into the house and try to steal a load of money that happens to be hidden in the "panic room". The mother hears the "HomeAlone-esque" criminals bumbling around in the house, grabs her daughter and hides out in the "panic room". The rest of the movie is comprised of the burglars attempting to break into the "panic room" and Jodie Foster failing to convincingly play the part of a concerned mother in a desperate situation. All in all, stay clear of this movie unless you are deathly bored or have seen all the other better movies that are out. To sum up: Fun level: 3 of 5 stars
Acting: 2 of 5 stars
Romance: 0 of 5 stars
Plot: 1 of 5 stars
Action: 2 of 5 stars
Rating:
Summary: Not Enough Panic; Not Enough Extras. . . .
Review: I didn't see this in the theater, and now I'm glad I didn't. The big screen might have helped a little but probably not enough. Since there are a ton of reviews already, I'll spare you the plot summary. Suffice it to say that Jodie Foster's claustrophobia needed to be way more evident and spotlighted throughout the movie. I needed to feel trapped in the panic room, as they did, or else the basic premise falls through a bit. The dialogue between the thugs was pretty amusing, but it distracted a bit from the ladies in the room. The director did some very . . . interesting? . . . visual things with wires going through walls, following the elevator as it progresses up or down, and a 90 degree camera shift as Foster lies in bed. While they were . . . interesting (?), they didn't make up for the lack of substance to the plot or the lack of "claustrophobia" in the movie itself. The director also used sound, or lack thereof, very effectively--one of the best scenes is virtually silent, which doesn't always work. This plot and storyline had a ton of potential, but I don't think the director or screenplay writer capitalized on it. The basic premise is very interesting, and the break-in works, but the events of the next few hours and the ending both shortchange the potential that exists. The DVD itself was a waste, too. There were absolutely no extras (interviews, making-of, deleted/extended scences)--nothing. They might have helped a little. You might as well buy the VHS version or wait for some kind of expanded, extended, or deluxe version if you want anything other than just the movie. It didn't hold up by itself. Jodie Foster was fine, but I think her role could have been written much better to capitalize on her incredible acting skills. Forest Whitaker was very good, considering the dialogue he had to work with, and his character was marginally compelling, even with the hokey ending (sorry). Dwight Yoakam was laugh-out-loud funny when he first appeared (I think that was good), but he was turned into somewhat of a joke by the end (did they need to make him look like Michael Keaton in BEETLEJUICE in his final scene. . . ?). The daughter was fine, the father/ex-husband seemed like an idiot, and the other thug was kind of amusing until his departure (do we want our thugs to be amusing?). Bottom Line: somewhat inconsistent potential and delivery. Performances were inhibited by the screenplay and were also inconsistent throughout the movie. I've seen worse, but I expected much better. Rent it before you buy it. . . .
Rating:
Summary: a little tense
Review: Even though Panic Room started off on a slow foot, it picks up for the most part. This is one of those films that can probably happen in real life. The girl who played Jodie Foster's daughter did a very good job in my opinion and the middle of the movie will leave you wondering how Jodie and her daughter will get out alive.
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