This movie is inept on so many levels I don't know where to start.First of all, I appreciate it's an independent release and must have required some effort to get it funded and shot etc. but that's about the only kind thing I could say.Ordinarily if an Independent movie is poor there's at least something to hook you in, or the embryo of a good idea in there somewhere, something that leaves the viewer at least saying that it had potential but not here.The movie is not that long, around 90 minutes but by the end you'll feel like you've spent an eternity in purgatory. The story is muddled, confusing and meanders from one location to the next. Acting is atrocious, how Gerard McSorely got roped into this will go down as one of the great mysteries of our time. The worst crime of all though is that at no point did I care about any of the characters involved.I'm an Irish citizen, and the troubles as they were referred to here should provide plenty of inspiration to would be film makers who surely could be able to come up with something a little more exciting than this?

Trapped AKA Anton (2008) was Graham Cantwell's first Directorial success as it was nominated for 3 IFTN's. A very brave subject matter (1972, beginning on the day after Bloody Sunday, and deals with the "Troubles") that was bound to be met with a lot of criticism (And did) , personally I liked it a lot. First off the Original Score is beautiful and the cinematography is sometimes bold which I love. What I appreciate about 'Trapped' is that it delves into the relationships surrounding Anton during this time. It has a somewhat problematic time frame but does ultimately explain the dilemma Anton is in- which solves that mystique. Local Gardai detective Lynch played by Gerard McSorley plays menacing at its best. One has to pay respect to the film makers as this was a very low budget film that did make it straight to DVD. It is political but it is also fresh in it's mini plots and angles.

I've only seen 'Anton' once and need to see it again. Although I was sitting toward the rear of the theatre in Dundrum, the images seemed to be on top of me, like I was on the front row. A lot was happening and the style was neither t.v. nor cinema - I don't know what it was, but I don't doubt the sincerity of intent - nor the escape from pseudo-agitprop 'Troubles' genres and avoidance of soap-motif the film represents.I certainly had a couple of quibbles, mostly continuity, though with over 20 gaffes in 'Quantum of Solace' - despite the huge budget - continuity must be no more than a film-maker's irritation on the way to box-office consummation.I'm really only writing this as a balance to the slightly hysterical foot-stampings contained in some other 'Anton' comments.Personal agendas are, by definition, self-revealing - am I mistaken in believing Eamonn McCann was a little put-out, on 'The View', that nobodies were getting their hands dirty in his sacred soil - well, I know there are a thousand such tales strung along the 'border' which will never see the light of day but which underpin the veracity of this particular film.With regard to performances - as above, I'm not really sure until I've seen 'Anton' again. There was an intensity and urgency which separates this film from its commercial counterparts and there were even moments which reminded me of Ken Russell's 'Women in Love' (D.H. Lawrence) and I'd like to have seen more.What was singularly in short supply was playing to the camera/pandering to the crowds/prostrating before the money-men, and for that alone these film-makers deserve more than bicycle-shed bickering.Next time I see the film I will have a better idea of the answers to the bag of questions my first viewing dumped in my lap, but with energy, integrity and intent, this actually Irish film avoids the manicured story-lines of Big-House-Entertainment and digs around in the undergrowth - not an easy place to make a film.If any of the makers read this - thank you for a seriously challenging piece - I suspect it is more to do with the future of film-making in Ireland than the past - I hope it is a passport to further work.

Wasn't expecting much from this, in light of the mixed reviews it received. I usually find that when some critics love a movie and some hate it, I usually end up hating it too. Not this time. For a start, it looks great. Best cinematography in an Irish film I've seen in years, more like David Fincher than anyone else. The plot / story is great too, keeps twisting and turning and the action never lets up. I thought the acting was top notch, especially the supporting roles. The brother, the wife and the little psycho IRA guy were all brilliant. I loved the score too. Only downside was that the time line jumped a little in the first twenty minutes and it was hard to follow what was happening when, but this didn't detract from the film at all. I can't see why some critics didn't like this film. I think a lot of Irish people are just have a blind spot for anything that relates to the troubles. Will probably do much better outside Ireland than it did here. I nearly didn't go to see this and I'm glad now that I got off my ass and made the effort. Well worth it.