Through the course of a 2-hour drive, a man's entire life falls utterly apart, yet in perhaps a more important aspect, that same man finds an internal triumph.

Very few actors can pull off this role, and Tom Hardy nailed it. Him, behind the wheel, making and getting call after call, as he drives to face the fruit of his dark secret. A man, that in order to truly do that which is right, risks throwing away all that he has previously worked to gain.

The voice actors in this film were excellent, too.

This is one of the best "people" movies that I've seen in a long time.

I've loved Tom Hardy since Star Trek Nemesis (20yrs ago!) I'm a huge fan & his performance was great, it's just the plot is so unbelievable. It's really a 2.5 stars, but I do love Hardy!
Spoilers ahead, so sorry!

First off being a woman in my 40's, I'm also a Registered Nurse, you would never let a high risk pregnancy & labor/delivery "marinate" that long - anyone over 40 is a high risk, she went into labor 2 entire months early, that is having severe pain in her chest, with the umbilical cord around the baby's neck, is a bona fide EMERGENCY! They would never fart around for nearly 2 hrs making ridiculous phone calls & worried that the Mom seemed upset - of course she is, but their actual lives matter more!!! I could barely stand listening to the hospital calls & Bethan. Generally there is already some kind of plan in place so the Mom is well informed about everything that could possibly go wrong during the pregnancy! This makes me question the research of the writer/director & NHS in the UK! The NHS couldn't possibly be that incompetent, there would be no children in England!

Locke apparently also has no freaking clue how serious pregnancy & labor & delivery is for a high risk pregnancy (& also for a first time Mom who is 43). Bethan also sounds too dimwitted to even be employed, or sexually attractive! (I wonder how much my husband would appreciate me having drunken pity sex with a pathetic church mouse, it's a laughable reason to cheat!) While he eventually did the right thing, it took him 6-7months to do it, so losing everything is kind of expected at this stage in his life. I also did not understand why Donal was drunk at work! Is that normal there? The work problems also seemed overly dramatized & petty & Locke could've sorted them out himself! I've never had a job where the "boss" didn't have a least one, but usually more trusted people, working under them that could competently fill in for them in an emergency. Even something "historic"! His talking to his loser father was strange too, does anybody actually do that?? Just knowing you're better than your parent's is good enough, it doesn't redeem him in my eyes anyway just being at the birth - it's the lifetime that truly matters. And expected to drop everything for an early, emergency c section birth! Any reasonable woman, especially a one night stand, would probably understand the guy cares, but he has a job he absolutely needs, so he can care for ($$$) their little miracle (& it is an impossible miracle). She's going to be exhausted anyway, there's no reason he couldn't have come in the morning after "the pour".

The movie was very slick & Tom Hardy is beautiful & believable to watch, but sadly it is not as great as the hype. Oh & how can he see driving on a highway at night reading his paperwork? Extremely unsafe too!

Going through the 1star reviews after watching this film, I found a whole bunch of people who are uninterested and/or bored by the premise of a man forced by circumstances of his own making to realize he doesn't have things as under control as he thought. Don't mind them. They are probably uncomfortable with the idea of true introspection and don't want to expend the effort of deeper, more analytical thinking.

I found the film to be riveting. The transformation Hardy goes through emotionally is reflected in his face as he becomes more and more haggard. He literally "had it all" and ends up losing it all. To see him proverbially grasping at straws as things careen further and further out of the control he thought he had was (for me) heartbreaking.

It's true that the entire film takes place with Hardy driving the car. Literally everything happens in this car. There's limited movement and interaction because of that. If you are expecting something else to happen you will probably be bored and disappointed, like the 1star reviewers. But if you can appreciate a performance showcasing a dynamic range of emotion and reaction that is intensified by being confined to one space, you will likely enjoy this film.

Tom Hardy won the LA Film Critics Best Actor award for his performance in this film. Why he was not nominated for the Best Actor Oscar that year is amazing. It was a very competitive year, and many fine performances were left out, but this should been one of them. This is a flawless performance. Made even more difficult because Hardy is the only person in the film. Every emotion, however subtle is covered here, and Hardy never, for one moment, appears as if he's acting, even though you know he is. He has to keep things interesting, confined in a car, on his way to support a woman he had an affair with, who's now giving birth to his child. This all plays out as everything falls apart. He has had to tell his wife and family about the affair, so you know how that goes. Then, there's a large building project he's responsible for, and it's a very delicate project, so he's trying to deal with that, with one of his employees. I don't want to give too much away, but believe me, you want to see this film. It's never boring, even though, again, Hardy is the only person in the film. In some ways, it reminds me of the film Moon, which had another great performance built around a single actor, only there, the actor was playing himself in doubles. Tom Hardy, is by far, one of the best actors working today. It's only a matter of time before he wins an Oscar. SEE THIS FILM!!!!!

Among the best films of 2014, LOCKE is a perfect example of what can be done with great writing, good craftsmanship and a superb actor. It is quite simply, unforgettable. It is also the antidote to an industry that is all too often in the thrall of bloated CGI extravaganzas, blithely destroying American cities and filling our screens with emptiness. This is the simple and powerful story of a man trying to make himself "good." As bland as that may sound to some, it is, in truth, the rarest of things: an edge-of-your-seat film about morality. It is what the art form can do when it is at its best.

*My rating is more of a 3.5 than it is a 4*

Locke is a 2013 British–American drama film written and directed by Steven Knight. The film stars Tom Hardy in the title role, the only character seen on screen, as he carries on a number of speakerphone conversations with characters voiced by Olivia Colman, Ruth Wilson, Andrew Scott, Ben Daniels, Tom Holland, and Bill Milner.

Seeing as how we only view one character on screen in this movie, it's impossible to write this review without making a comment about Tom Hardy's performance. Hardy’s facial expressions and body language over the course of the film is strong and matches the tone of the scenario he is in as it changes. There is no guessing as to how Locke is feeling, as it is literally written all over his face. The subtleties of Locke’s presentation - Like the slight fluctuations of his voice, and the way his eyebrows move while staying specific lines - are more than essential for the success of this film. If you watch this movie for any one reason, Tom Hardy's ability to be engaging over the course of an hour and a half in such a visually unappealing environment is impressive to say the very least.

[SPOILERS START HERE]
Nonetheless, I will say that this movie is tragically predictable; If you're a fan of plot twists and endings you never saw coming, this is simply not the film for you.
“At no point is the audience given any hint that Hardy is struggling with the primary decision being made. I can appreciate having insight and being given an opportunity to see how Hardy comes to terms with how his life has turned out, But given the menagerie of chaos that ensues it just seems odd that at no point does he think ‘would it just be better off if I just turned this car around?’.
[SPOILERS END HERE]

Regardless of my primary criticism I will give this film a pat on the back for being at least one thing - and that's holistically realistic. I imagine given the complexity of Locke’s current situation it might be hard to relate to his character 100%, but the magnitude of the choices he must make are rather commonplace. In addition to this, his innate desire to be his own person and make decisions that defy what some might consider his fate can also be easily appreciated by the audience. This movie feels like a potentially long episode of ‘What Would You Do’ and going in with these expectations Is guaranteed to make this a more pleasant experience.

A good morning dun film if the opportunity presents itself - I would recommend!

If you have ever seen Phone Booth and thought that there was very little happening, take out the minimum level of action and adventure and you start getting closer to Locke. This show is based on him driving his car with very obvious repeated scenery moving past. Supposedly he is driving over the speed limit yet every car on the road is passing him like he is standing still. If you are lucky enough to get to the end, the absolute lack of closure should not surprise you. There is no significant plot. He is driving while trying to take care of multiple tasks and getting someone else to help with the most important building construction in his life, all while being fired and driving to see a woman who is having his baby 2 hours away. This film has inspired me to throw out some seed and record the miraculous events as grass grows.

Had me transfixed from the beginning---I rarely even blinked through the entire film. Yeah, yeah, yeah, this film isn't for everyone--if you're looking for heavy action and plentiful scenery changes, you will NOT find it in this movie. BUT THAT'S THE BEAUTY OF IT. This is purely psychological. In one car trip, you see/hear a man's life spiraling as he accepts the consequences of a relational transgression. It's a one-man show---you only get to know other characters via cell phone calls (fascinating, loaded, tense conversations). So Hardy has to carry the whole thing, and carry it he does. This is one of the best performances I've ever seen.