User reviews

While director James Dylan manages to put a few original spins on an otherwise borrowed premise, his lack of experience shows. Technical issues, overacting, and budget limitations dampen what could have been a memorable debut.

Holy crap this movie went from thriller to comical, in 5 seconds flat and then there was Tom

The story is a high concept suspense told in a minimalist, claustrophobic manner. The idea is familiar and novel. Dylan plays on those familiar tropes with creativity and style. The dark, often close-framed shots create an atmosphere of suspense and tension. It gives a physical representation to the dire circumstances and loss of control both in situation and emotion.

The single actor drama is a risky choice that can, at times, seem tedious. Putting more constraint on the ability for an organic flow. And for the most part "Cargo" falls into this trap. The unseen antagonist offers some relief, providing a catalyst for both the story motion, and the character study. However the execution of the one-man show often feels forced and looses momentum periodically. Not by any fault of the actor, Ron Thompson, he gives a great performance.

The cinematography is quality, keeping the scenes, and setting interesting throughout the movie. The soundtrack is also good and seems to compliment the journey of this tortured, kidnapped (bad man). Still at times "Cargo" did loose my attention, and to finish did require dedication. Check it out but the high concept and uniqueness will only really speak to a select audience.

Honestly, fast forward precisely 74 minutes. The entirety of the film gets explained in a few short sentences at that point. It ends 3 minutes later, just as ridiculously and nonsensically as everything that came before it.

This is a movie that has the worsts of everything. Period.

When so much depends on the single main actor - he should at least be able to act. I could only get thru 20 minutes. Do yourself a favor and skip this one.

Would have thought he would just have rung the cops!

Two hours of watching a single actor doing a very bad acting job inside of a cargo container . I was really hoping for something interesting to happen right till the end of this movie, being fooled by a 6.8 rating.

Unfortunately this movie wouldn't even get a C+ as a project for a junior in a film academy. Characters are exaggerated, plot full of holes. I guess the positive ratings come from the makers of the movie Don't waste your time.

There's one "actor" and he couldn't even dial a cell phone believably. I actually enjoyed how bad it was. I knew it was horrid 5mins in but couldn't stop. Watch with a friend and clown away sarcastically

I felt compelled to review this thriller. It's a concept similar to movies like Locke and All is Lost and Buried. About one man trapped in an impossible situation as he tries to wile his way out of it. Ron Thompson gives a solid performance as antihero Anthony Peterson trapped in a metal cargo container and being held for ransom by, I'm guessing, terrorists. I liked a lot of the supporting voice over actors as well. The insanity and dark comedy of the film at times reminded me of Hong Kong cinema. Certainly not a film for everyone yet if you dig one man movies you'll probably like this one!

I watched this because I'm a huge fan of Ron Thompson's work as Tony and Pete in the magnificent, underrated Ralph Bakshi film American Pop. I'm not a fan of horror thrillers. So why am I giving it a high rating? Because I appreciate what the filmmakers did here. This is an independent film through and through. No big budget. No fancy locations. But they came up with an interesting premise: Crappy, wealthy guy Anthony Peterson is being held in a cargo container for ransom. All the action takes place in the cargo container. Peterson doesn't know where he is. The only link to the outside world is a cell phone that cannot be traced. Peterson has to call anyone he can think of to convince them to transfer money to his abductors and secure his release. The voice acting of the folks with whom our "hero" Peterson interacts was problematic for me at first, but then I leaned into it, as I realized it was intentionally exaggerated, and it contributed to the over-the-top ride. Add to that the creative use of space, wild camera angles, and a stellar score from Thorsten Quaeschning of Tangerine Dream, and you've got a solid horror thriller. If you're into horror thrillers, you'll dig this movie.

Thought I'd give this a whirl, what a mistake that was. Rather than waste time with the why's and what not's, just don't bother it's utter utter crap........

A guy finds himself in a metal cargo container and finds out his wife is kidnapped and he has to come up with ten million dollars. The fact the kidnappers think a guy can get ten million dollars on the phone in one night just like that is ridiculous. And a sign of how bad this is written.

To do a film like this, you need two things - a great actor and a great script. This has neither. The "actor" is unbearable. Terrible. The script is terrible.

He's talking to an associate to get the money and the associate says "good thing you can keep your sense of humor" and other things that no one would ever say in a situation like this. Every other piece of dialog is ridiculous.

Once the guy on the phone is driving a fast car and we hear the car like it's outside (not on the phone) I stopped. Couldn't take it.

This was terrible.

I felt compelled to open an IMDb account just to warn others about this utter load a crap of a film. Boring, terrible acting! Even 1 star is way too generous This isn't staight to DVD its should be straight in bin

In the opening scene the first thing I thought was "Oh Sh%t? I accidentally downloaded the wrong movie" , Because of course there is another movie called "Cargo" but without the brackets. That's the good cargo, this cargo, very very bad. The very first thing you notice in this film is the walls of this room/container have been spray painted black. It literally took a person or people hours to spray paint the inside of this thing. Enough said.

If you are restricting your "action" to one actor and scene, ensure your actor can act and that tension is believably built. Never sat through such rubbish purely hoping there would be something redeeming. There isn't.

Is this some kind of a joke? extremely bad movie, bad acting, horribly quality... Do yourself a favor and never watch this movie

Bad output, bad scenario, worst representation, waste of time

One of the better thrillers I've seen in a long time. The concept is fresh, the look of the film is stark and engaging, a very good storyline overall. I love the synthesizer soundtrack as well. Flawed? Sure. Yet all in all a good thriller that's worth seeing.

This film is an independent low budget production. Ron Thompson is an experienced veteran actor who did a terrific job in the role. He played anthony Peterson, a California businessman. The only other characters are on the phone with him as he pleads to get the ransom. He doesn't come across as a sympathetic character. He is not a good man. We learn about him from his conversations with his son, colleague, kidnapper and best friend. For a low budget film, it's satisfactory.

I don't know what more to say. Probably the worst movie and acting I have ever seen.

The film gets a jump start in the right direction throwing the story right out in the middle of the heat. Thats where Cargo Succeeds, it uses the strangeness of the situation to keep the story up and running.

A movie consisting of one man in a box, talking on the telephone with the disembodied voices of the other characters. So it's a bit more like a radio play. The acting of the one man cast is really amazing and the tension is powerfully sustained for the length of the film. The film has pathos and even over-the-top dark humour. I was enthralled the whole length of the film, as if it was a "page-turner" paperback thriller, from the good old days. It does have "dark" content, but nothing that a modern horror fan would flinch at. A very well-done little melodrama.