16 Years Later, This Gripping Survival Thriller Remains Ryan Reynolds' Best Acting Performance
He has never had a role as complex or multifaceted as this one, which required such emotional range and physical tension.
Released 16 years ago, Buried is still a uniquely conceptual thriller and Ryan Reynolds' finest performance. The entire film was shot inside a coffin, and the only actor seen in the frame is Reynolds himself.
Despite its limited budget and complete lack of action, Buried will surely keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end.
What Is 'Buried' About?
Paul is a U.S. Army contractor serving as a truck driver in Iraq. After an attack, he awakes to find himself buried deep underground in an old wooden coffin. He has only a lighter and a cell phone in his pockets, and the phone's battery is dying quickly.
His captors demand a $5 million ransom and threaten to leave him to die. Desperately trying to contact the embassy, his wife, and his colleagues, Paul is disappointed when every call goes unanswered.
His phone is his only connection to the outside world, and with each passing hour, his oxygen supply dwindles.
No Other Role Has Showcased Ryan Reynolds' Dramatic Talent Quite Like This One
We're accustomed to seeing Ryan Reynolds play the sarcastic jokester in most of his projects. However, Buried reveals him to be a serious dramatic actor capable of carrying an entire movie on his own.
He plays a man who transitions from shock to panic to despair to determination, all through his voice and facial expressions. Reynolds convincingly conveys claustrophobic fear, the pain of abandonment, and the hope that dies last.
The scene in which he tries to steady his voice to speak with his wife or yells at an unresponsive operator is a true performance.
Director Rodrigo Cortés uses close-ups of the actor's face to reveal every emotion, and Reynolds pulls it off brilliantly.
'Buried' Is a Claustrophobic Thriller That Will Keep You on the Edge of Your Seat Until the Very End
Buried is a concept film in which the writing and directing team managed to harness and subjugate the concept to the actors' will. Cortés builds on Hitchcockian unity of time and place, taking it to the extreme with an hour and a half in a single coffin.
Every second of screen time is filled with tension: we hear sand pouring through the cracks and the wood creaking under the weight of the earth.
Buried poses thankless questions such as "What would you do?" and forces viewers to empathize with the main character as if they were in the coffin.
What Did Critics & Viewers Think of 'Buried'?
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Buried has 87% from critics and 65% from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes.
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On IMDb, the movie has a score of 7.0/10.
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On Letterboxd, Buried scored 3.3/5.0.
Where to Watch 'Buried'?
Buried is available to stream on Tubi TV.
