TV insider tip: In this claustrophobic thriller, the theft of a car radio becomes a total horror

A person trapped in a small space and a sharp running time: the hyper-claustrophobic thriller subgenre is done. The best-known representatives are probably “Don’t hang up!” aka “Colin Farrell in the phone booth” and “Buried” aka “Ryan Reynolds underground”. But there are many more – such as the Argentinian “4×4 – Welcome Aboard”, about a thief trapped in an SUV.

The result is an insider tip that is thick towards the end, but entertaining and exciting. Perfect for a weekday TV evening. How fitting is that “4×4” on Tuesday, January 16, 2024 from 10:20 PM on Tele 5. Or you can watch the film as VOD via Amazon Prime Video:

“4×4”: can anti-car advertising be effective?

Buenos Aires: Ciro (Peter Lanzani) discovers a big SUV on the side of the road. With targeted maneuvers and the help of a tennis ball, he cracks the silver road cruiser and grabs the car radio. He makes a fuss in the car, urinates in the backseat and tries to run away. But the SUV is locked – and even with his best efforts, Ciro can’t pry open the windows or doors…

Director and writer Mariano Cohn and his writing partner Gastón Duprat opened with “4×4” (intentionally or not). excellent anti-SUV advertising created: The heavy part appears to be easy to break open from the outside, which is probably not in the interest of those who spend a lot of money for a fat, oversized car. Meanwhile, the SUV cannot be broken into from the inside – which could pose a huge problem for the occupants in an emergency.

SUV: pure torture

But now Ciro is neither the rightful owner nor stuck in the car after an accident that wasn’t his fault: the SUV is parked inconspicuously on the side of the road (at least as inconspicuous as a silver SUV can be in what isn’t ). exactly the richest neighborhood of Buenos Aires) and Ciro wants to get out of his prey quickly and unnoticed.

From this simple premise, Cohn and Duprat initially create a straightforward chamber drama thriller: Ciro’s liberation struggle is filled with “Oh yeah, that might work!” hopes and understandable “Shit, of course it won’t work!” frustrations. The SUV is also a suitable setting for a ‘tight seat story’ because it is large enough to offer the protagonist solutions through numerous ‘attack surfaces’ (that lead nowhere) and to constantly irritate him.

Either way, the SUV is so oppressive that Ciro’s increasingly violent swings between brutal panic and introspective terror are understandable. The exciting pleasure is further enhanced by the fact that Lanzani embodies the increasingly tired thief who fights for freedom, expressively but without exaggeration.

The video game problem

However, as a film with a protagonist in a difficult situation, “4×4” has major hurdles to overcome with a certain audience: the “I watch every movie like a video game!” When Ciro solves the puzzle ‘How do I get out of this prison on four wheels?!’ approached differently than the members of this audience would do, the shouting, groaning and roaring begins.

Exclamations such as “What an idiot!”, “I would be free again a long time ago!” and “What a stupid movie, that guy could just do it [das tun, was ich mir gerade vorstelle, ohne zu wissen, ob es funktioniert]!” are guaranteed. This audience consistently forgets that movies are not interactive puzzles and that the lack of immediate relief is the heart of the matter.

What becomes clear when you don’t yell at Ciro as if he’s in the first level of a video game that a less experienced person controls and you have to watch helplessly. In his production, Cohn mainly rubs questions about compassion under our noses. About: Do we laugh happily at the thief who, moments after urinating on the backseat of his SUV, rolls around in panic in his own urine? Or are we concerned about a young man who is hermetically sealed off from the outside world?

Horrifying, but amazing inspired by true events in Brazil Vigilante element, Cohn and Duprat clarify this element later. This keeps the film fresh – but they overdramatize the events in the final third while robbing their message of effectiveness with mallet dialogue.

Nevertheless, “4×4” continues to exist Pleasant, fast and exciting entertainment until the end – and if it raises pointed questions for the next break conversation, hopefully that won’t hurt either.