Claustrophobics beware!

Imagine being stuck in a coffin underground in one of the most dangerous places in the world. Imagine only having a mobile phone and a zippo lighter as your only source of light and communication with the outside world.

Mexican director Rodrigo Cortes chose this story and only leading man Ryan Reynolds to produce the premise of an entire film based solely in the setting of a very self contained set piece.

For Paul Conroy his worst nightmare has come true, as an American lorry driver who is ambushed by terrorists and knocked unconscious, waking up in a coffin underground in Iraq.

What Cortes manages to do with the film is suck the audiences attention within the first couple of minutes with a pitch black screen, deep heavy set breathing, and a struggle to escape.

Ryan Reynolds' film wholeheartedly playing a character struck with fear and a ticking clock

As the narrative takes twist after twist, shock after shock, the concentration never falters throughout the whole 95 minutes. Conroy’s attempts in an effort to find a way out through countless phone calls, and physical struggles, however result with fatally unfortunate circumstances against his favours.

An intelligent and dramatic film, Reynolds plays against type as the desperate survivor, Buried, is simply breathtaking in moments and features recurring grip your seat moments.

Whilst filmed almost entirely with just the diegetic sound inside the coffin, though, it comes across as underplayed and unfitting when compared to such gung-ho action films of recent times.

It just about revels, reaching soaring and affecting emotional moments gripping any audiences who fears being buried alive.

Although the brevity of the situation in the coffin, there are unusual places for dark humour in the riveting events unfolding, in the face of adversity conflicting Conroy’s future survival.

A Zippo and a mobile phone. Essentials when buried underground.

A guessing game right until the climatic ending, Reynolds is the leading man, the story teller and completely unrecognisable compared to his usual spirited comedic roles and instead carries the film with a powerhouse performance of body and mind.

That Reynolds can conquer any need for special effects and demand full attention, without action left, right and centre is all in full favour of a bright and fruitful career ahead in dramas, leaving behind the atypical performances an all round worthy leading man.