Daddio

In the compendium of digital movies that take place entirely, or almost entirely, in a single vehicle (Locke, Wheelman, 303), playwright Christy Hall's debut feature stands out. The two-hander starring Dakota Johnson and Sean Penn never feels like a stunt or a gimmicky calling card for a new director. Nor does it seem like material that would have been better suited on the stage. This is a simple chamber piece about two characters—one a motormouth cab driver and the other a young woman returning to Manhattan from a visit with her estranged half-sister—sizing each other up, engaging in playful but substantive banter, and ultimately connecting on a deep level. Both actors give compelling performances, doing as much with their eyes in silence as they do when delivering Hall's excellent dialogue. Visually, Hall, cinematographer Phedon Papamichael, and editor Lisa Zeno Churgin never draw focus away from the actors. There are no distracting jump cuts or pointless virtuosic camera movies. Everything remains locked down and static, yet nothing ever feels like it's just randomly cutting back and forth between four or five fixed camera positions (which prevents the otherwise excellent Locke from fully engaging like a "real movie"). The close physical space, with its fixed delineation between front seat and back, provides a palpable feeling of both intimacy and separation, vulnerability and protection, which enables the rich taxicab confessions in which these characters participate.