ATM is actually a pretty good horror movie. It focuses more on suspense than blood and gore, which I appreciate, and it maintains a sense of realism throughout. Yes, it is fairly contrived and yes, the ending is unsatisfying, but the movie, as a whole, does a good job of creating tension. Plus, each member of the small cast gives an excellent performance. I'd watch this one again.

It's fun to take this movie a part which I think is why there are so many reviews but let me just say that it's a pretty fun movie to say, "why don't they just.. "That guy isn't the killer..." "Why wasn't anyone watching when the killer set a booby trap? (I think it was trying to be a like Saw movie but the writing couldn't get smart enough and frankly those booby trap movies are boring). In this day and age, I can tell you these three people could easily be my friends, stuck in an ATM after parking so far away because of some weirdo stalking the parking lot, trying to figure out the best way to get out of there and ultimately just wimping out over the strange circumstances and start blaming each other. And with the crazy stories I read in the news daily, the premise really wasn't all that much of a stretch. That said the biggest blunder for me was when the girl died at the end (after we bonded with her) by her head hitting the counter when she fell off the guy's shoulders because her head missed it. I appreciated the ending with giving us some idea about the killer though for the most part it was pretty unsatisfying.

I think these single location thrillers either fail or succeed depending on their level of believability (that and the level of suspense, of course). Sadly, ATM isn't one of the more realistic of its kind, because I never really brought the premise or set-up. Three random, rather unlikeable characters are trapped over the course of one night at a cash machine. That's all the plot you're going to get, and I'm afraid I began to find it tiresome before long.The problem with the film is that it's content to follow a simple and rather familiar path instead of setting out to break new ground. Thus the old 'hooded killer' trope is wheeled out once again and fails to elicit much tension. Throwing in extra kills and violence doesn't really add much. The central cast members do their best with the material and I quite liked them by the end, but I'm afraid that the various twists and turns of the narrative consistently failed to entertain me.

From the writer of the acclaimed 2010 surprise hit "Buried" (which I haven't seen yet) comes this very simplistic and implausible, but occasionally unsettling thriller. You better don't contemplate too much about the numerous holes in the plot, the bizarrely stupid personalities of the main characters and – particularly – the incredibly weird and far-fetched motives/gimmick of the killer when they get revealed near the end of the movie (I'll come back to that later), and if you manage that, you can enjoy a taut little thriller with a claustrophobic atmosphere. Three finance colleagues, a guy and a girl on the verge of becoming a couple and one incredibly annoying "fifth-wheel-on-the-wagon" guy, leave their office's Christmas party together on a cold winter evening and make an additional stop to withdraw cash. For some odd reason the ATM machine is a glass booth in the middle of an abandoned parking lot, and for an even odder reason David parks his car fifty yards away from the booth even though he could have parked right in front of it. When the trio intends to leave again, the way to their car is blocked by a motionless but menacing figure in a thick & furry winter coat. He – or she – promptly kills an innocent bystander and makes it unmistakably clear to the trio that walking out of the ATM booth is not a very safe idea. What follows is an intense cat-an- mouse game where the trapped victims attempt to attract the attention of emergency services through surveillance cameras, sprinkler systems and even the girl's lipstick. Their assailant remains calm and doesn't even try to break into the booth, but terrorizes them from outside. Meanwhile, the combination of ice cold temperatures and dreadful fear are causing struggles between the threesome inside the booth. The most positive comments I can write down about "ATM" is that the film never becomes boring and that the director makes good use of the single and isolated location. The acting performances are above average, with Josh Peck admirably depicting the intolerable and loathsome type of obtrusive co-worker like we all know at least one from own experience. Brian Geraghty and Alive Eve give away adequate performances as well, and it has to be said that the latter is a truly beautiful and natural woman. Now, as promised, I come back to the denouement and more particularly to the motives and modus operandi of the killer (additional spoiler warning here). The film ends with the killer making careful and detailed preparations for a next trap. Similar sequences also featured during the opening sequences already, but didn't make much sense yet at that point. This person accurately measures the range of surveillance cameras, studies how to disable electrical equipment and prepares techniques to manipulate his victims into making certain decisions. So, if I understand correctly, he intends to blame the survivor(s) for going berserk and killing the others based on blurry video footage on which he doesn't appear himself? That is one strange hobby or way to kill time, to say the least. I certainly can't deny that it is original and unpredictable, but with a conclusion like this "ATM" doesn't score too many points in the credibility department