James Dunham and Laura Geall make their directorial debut in this harrowing representation of domestic abuse. In this gritty social realism, Dunham and Geall have broken societal expectations by having the female as the abuser, with the main star, Sam (Mark Summers); playing the victim. With this the audience are cleverly reminded that uncomfortable truths still lie below the surface.
We see a character that represents a standard, Inbetweeners-style ’lad’, “going out on the pull” with his friends, criticising his “clingy” girlfriend. However, we are lulled into a false pretence of protagonist and antagonist here, and we find when Sam is in his world away from his friends, all is not what we have been led to believe. Sam takes us through his relationship with Amy (Megan Trigg) through a series of Ascending-style flashbacks. As his memories progress, we are made witness to the subtly-growing violence.
In the first flashback the audience are made to believe that Amy is to Sam, as Lady is to Tramp. This moment of intertextuality is there to signify romance. However, by comparing their relationship to this oh-so-sweet Disney classic, Amy’s stifling nature is heightened later on, when we realise that this is far from the truth.
Amy’s psychotic, possessive tendencies are triggered by Laura, Sam’s “friend from college”. We see this in a flashback, when a cleverly edited transition reveals Amy and Sam’s confrontation after meeting Laura (Laura Geall, Snapshot). The moments of violence throughout the film are only shown to us subtly, reminding the audience of the ever-present theme that things are not always as they appear. Even in the final confrontation, Dunham and Geall rely only on the off-screen diegetic sound of Sam’s reaction. Hearing his pain is more chilling than seeing it; a cold reminder to the audience that abuse is not always visual.
Summers was given the difficult task of playing an abused college student. Even though his portrayal of the character was hardly Oscar-winning, it does nothing to ruin the overall feel of the film. Even when we see him look to the camera on occasion, Trigg’s outstanding performance just about manages to hold everything together. Her excellent portrayal of such a cold-hearted character, eerily similar to bunny-boiler Glenn Close, conveys her dominance and reiterates Sam’s weak character (whilst reminding us of Summers’ weak acting). Using unknown actors helps portray the social realist aspect, and like many other actors from this genre, Summers was plucked off of the street; in the hope of creating greater realism. These hopes are not fulfilled, however, and the casting director needs to be fired - effective immediately.
The audience roots for Sam when they realise what he is going through. We hope for him to find a way out of this relationship that he is isolated in; being truly representative of its title: Trapped. Even by the end we see there is no escape for him; as Dunham and Geall reveal the most extreme consequences of domestic abuse.
The audience are left judging themselves for criticising Sam, and contemplating whether relationships are really as they appear. The truth of this barefaced social realist film hits home with the audience, leaving them with a truly chilling feeling.
Anticipation: With it being a directorial debut from Dunham and Geall, we were tentative about the quality - 3
Enjoyment: 'Excellent, edge-of-the-seat portrayal of domestic abuse'.
- 4
In retrospect: 'Makes you take a close look at life - when is reality really the truth - 4
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