When I first heard about ATM, I’ll admit that I was intrigued, partly because of the familiarity of the cast, but mostly, I wanted to know how someone could keep three people inside a glass room, by just standing there. Obviously, it could turn out horribly bad, but the fact that Peck, Geraghty, and Eve all choose to do this film gave me a glimmer of hope there was something original here.
Sadly, there isn’t much originality, but there is something about it that keeps you watching, be it the beautiful Eve, or the fact that the characters are apparently so terrified and cold they can’t entertain a single rational thought to escape.
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| So cold our brains collectively shut down |
The film is about David, who is friends with his obnoxious co-worker, Corey, and has a crush on Emily, whose last day is the day of the company Christmas party. After embarrassing himself with Emily, yet again, David finds out that Emily has had a crush on him as well. David offers Emily a ride home, forgetting that he promised Corey a ride as well. Drunk, chatty, hungry and without cash, Corey begs them to stop at an ATM so he can get some pizza. Once all three are ready to leave the ATM, they find a mysterious hooded figure standing in-between them and their car, which is parked obnoxiously far away. From there each character takes their turns making bone-head decisions that make you yell obscenities at the screen.
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| It says I’m fully overdrawn! |
The small cast does well in their low maintenance roles, and did I mention Eve is beautiful? The mysterious person outside the glass walls proves to be too mysterious for their own good because nothing is ever explained. I know some like not knowing what a killer’s motives are because it adds to the terror, but here literally all you will ever know is that they kill. For me, that isn’t’t enough.
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| Nope, well, maybe the blonde… |
Overall, it’s a simple film that doesn’t test its boundaries as much as it should if it wanted to separate itself from the pack of similar horror films. It basically comes down to a simple question; have you seen any of the other “people stuck in a box” films that have come out the past couple years? If you answered yes, then you have basically seen ATM.
@TheTalkingCan verdict – 4/10
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