Shuttle

All Interactive

R4 DVD

Shuttle is an unusual thriller which combines a high level of violence with suspense and an intriguing plot. The central premise centres around “white slavery” and certainly is a dark and visceral viewing experience.

Mel (Peyton List) and Jules (Cameron Goodman) are returning from a holiday but having chosen a cheap fare find themselves with missing luggage and locked outside the transit lounge at the airport. They hitch up with a couple of guys and look for a shuttle service. They are just about to board an official service when another shuttle comes along and offers the trip at half price. There is an older looking man in the shuttle and all seems legit, so off they go for the journey. The driver (he is never named), takes them the long way round with stories of the highway being repaired. They all talk among themselves, flirting and joking until they realize something is very wrong. By now, however, they are in the middle of nowhere and things start to go from bad to worse. The strongest of the young men has his fingers cut off when changing a wheel as the van “accidently” drops and step by step the driver takes control of the passengers, forcing them to handover credit cards, withdraw money and valuables. However, it seems money is not his prime concern.

As they drive into nowhere, he forces one of the girls to purchase a range of items at a store and this is one of the more stupid scenes. She not only does what she is told but communicates via hand gestures to the store camera in an attempt to get help, which of course achieves little. There are a number of these rather silly plot twists which take away from what is an extremely powerful movie with a harrowing conclusion.

The movie continues with a range of interesting twists and turns and certainly the ongoing battle between Mel and the driver are impressive and painful. However, in the end it becomes a little exhausting; Mel constantly misses the mark, makes the wrong stab and just doesn’t take control when both she and her friend’s life are at risk. When confronted clearly with a life in white slavery, she still doesn’t make the cut, she has the gun, but somehow misses ! At the same time, the driver seems to border on superhuman, at times he seems like “Freddy Krueger” or “Jason” – no matter what is done to him he won’t stay down and this stretches the credibility of the film to breaking point.

The final scenes are certainly harrowing and while you would expect a final vengeful killing as the driver is destroyed and the final girl survives, this is not to be. She is locked in a box with the goods she has bought at the store and sent off into white slavery, on the kitty litter she must use as a toilet is a photo of naked woman beaten and bruised who are obviously sex slaves. Certainly a potent image.

Shuttle is uneven and at times lacks believability; the acting is generally good with some intriguing roles such as the weak family man who turns out to be an accomplice.

On the whole, Shuttle is suspenseful and action packed. There is not a moment when you are not on the edge of your seat and while the plot may leave a little to be desired in parts, it is certainly an effective work of cinema which tries to create a story which is a bit different from the current run of the mill suspense films.

This review will appear in Volume 2:1 (2009) of the digital and print edition of Synergy Magazine.

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