'Panic Room' entertains through stunning visuals

Panic Room - R\nStarring: Jodie Foster, Forest Whitaker and Kristen Stewart\nDirected by: David Fincher\nShowing: Showplace West 12\nDavid Fincher is quickly becoming one of the best dark suspense/thriller directors of his generation. With films like "Seven," "The Game" and "Fight Club" on his resume, his new Jodie Foster release "Panic Room" had a lot to live up to.\nMeg Altman (Foster) and her daughter Sarah (Kristen Stewart) move into an amazing brownstone in Manhattan, and in this new house is something called a "panic room," a small bunker that has thick concrete and impenetrable steel surrounding it. When the former owner's grandson Junior (Jared Leto) comes to get the money left over by gramps in the panic room, the gripping "What's gonna happen next?" plot begins. \nThree thugs are what's keeping Foster in the room, including the dim-witted ringleader Junior, the out-of-control psychopath-with-a-gun Raoul (Dwight Yoakam) and the only man who knows the ins-and-outs of the room because he built it, Burnham (Forest Whitaker).\nWhat is amazing about this film are the incredible visuals and camerawork. Obviously there is a lot of help from computer-animated graphics on some of the camera movements, but there will be a constant "How did they do that?" in the back of your head. A lot of the film is also seen through security cameras to add the special realism of what the characters are going through. \nThe only problem with the movie is with the less-than-suspenseful middle, and the questionable ending. And what I mean by less-than-suspenseful middle is that the main characters are put in some life-or-death situations where the audience knows the females will survive because there's still an hour left to the movie. \n"Panic Room" might not be as great as Fincher's earlier films, but it's still a really good thriller that will keep you entertained and at the edge of your seat. \n

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