---
title: "Locke: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/locke/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/locke"
critics_score: 75
critics_reviews: 25
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Locke (2014): what the critics said

Critics' score 75 from 25 reviews: 20 positive, 3 mixed, 2 negative.

Most critics respond warmly to Locke, with praise centred on Tom Hardy’s controlled performance and the tension Steven Knight sustains inside a single car. The reviews repeatedly single out Hardy’s voice, precise delivery and expressive close-ups as enough to make a life beyond the vehicle feel present. For the majority, the restricted setting gives the personal and professional crises an urgency that needs little physical action.

The spread is wide, however, and the central disagreement concerns how much cinema Knight makes from his premise. Some admire the reflections and close framing; others find the images repetitive and the drama too theatrical. The AV Club sees contrived phone conversations and an acting exercise with limited cinematic imagination. Slant Magazine admires the phone-call structure but objects to explicit symbolism, while even several favourable reviews acknowledge the strain of the setup. Hardy attracts praise across the divide.

## Empire — Olly Richards

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 13 February 2014. 

The critic calls the film a daring experiment brilliantly executed, highlighting its thriller elements of whispers and silences rather than action. Tom Hardy's economical and riveting lead performance is singled out as one of his career bests.

[Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/locke-review/)

## Los Angeles Times — Kenneth Turan

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 24 April 2014. 

Tom Hardy's mesmerizing acting and Steven Knight's whip-smart direction turn the single-location premise into something continuously involving and tense. The critic notes how the micro-budgeted film's hypnotic execution outpaces more expensive productions despite its contrived setup.

[Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-locke-review-20140425-story.html)

## RogerEbert.com — Glenn Kenny

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 25 April 2014. 

The film succeeds as a cinematic stunt thanks to Tom Hardy's mesmerizing one-man performance as a man driving through a night of personal and professional crisis. The critic praises the way the constrained format deepens the portrayal of moral choice and emotional weight.

[Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/locke-2014)

## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 20 April 2014. 

Tom Hardy proves he can act in a minor key in this compelling portrait of a man in transit and in crisis. The film is a bold, evocative drama in which voices, intonations and noises off build up a detailed picture of a world and a man's life, as elegantly and economically as the best radio play.

[Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/apr/20/locke-tom-hardy-review)

## The Hollywood Reporter — David Rooney

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 3 September 2013. Festival review. 

The critic calls it a virtuoso narrative and technical experiment in real-time minimalist storytelling, driven by Tom Hardy's knockout performance as a man whose life unravels during a fraught car journey.

[Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/locke-review-tom-hardy-steven-knight-619473/)

## Screen Daily

Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 2 September 2013. Festival review. 

Locke is a gripping and deeply cinematic human and ethical drama and one of the few real revelations of the Venice Film Festival; Hardy gives a magnificent performance as a decent man determined to do the right thing.

[Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/locke/5059867.article)

## Little White Lies — David Jenkins

Rating 3/4/3. 18 April 2014. 

The critic finds the film a clever stage play transposed to screen that just fulfils its remit as a movie, thanks to a stunning central performance from Tom Hardy.

[Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/locke)

## Radio Times — Karen Krizanovich

Rating 4/5. 

Tom Hardy gives the performance of a lifetime in this self-contained tour de force; it is an unexpectedly thrilling real-time drama shot almost entirely inside a car.

[Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-b3wuwo/locke/)

## Time Out — Dave Calhoun

Rating 4/5. 3 September 2013. Festival review. 

Knight delivers a taut story that could hardly be more contained; it is a brilliant performance from Hardy and a masterclass in how local stories can reverberate with universal themes.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/locke)

## Vulture — David Edelstein

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 25 April 2014. 

The critic praises the daring one-man, one-car setup as an extraordinary tour de force powered by Tom Hardy's volatile, memorable performance and Knight's classical execution.

[Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/2014/04/movie-review-locke.html)

## IndieWire — Beth Hanna

Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 15 April 2014. 

The review highlights the film as an existential thriller centered on Tom Hardy's compelling voice and performance in a contained, intense narrative.

[Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/culture/review-existential-thriller-locke-starring-tom-hardy-and-his-fabulous-voice-192686/)

## The New York Times — Manohla Dargis

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 24 April 2014. 

The minimalist road movie keeps viewers engaged through intimate close-ups of Tom Hardy as a construction foreman navigating family and work crises via phone calls while driving. The critic highlights the film's focus on emotional geography and the power of the human face in close quarters.

[Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/25/movies/locke-centers-on-a-fateful-nights-journey.html)

## The Telegraph — Mike McCahill

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 20 April 2014. 

Tom Hardy is increasingly unhinged in this gripping, nocturnal road movie. Locke is a compact, nocturnal character study using the car as a vehicle to cruise through competing male preoccupations, with Hardy unmasked as a performer of considerable skill.

[Read the review](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/10769970/Locke-a-night-drive-of-great-skill.html)

## The AV Club — A.A. Dowd

Rating C. 24 April 2014. 

The critic views it as a conceptually austere but ultimately unsatisfying glorified acting exercise, undermined by contrived phone conversations and limited cinematic imagination despite Hardy's effort.

[Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/tom-hardy-takes-an-unsatisfying-solo-drive-in-locke-1798180236)

## Evening Standard — Charlotte O'Sullivan

Fi1m's normalised score 55/100 (inferred from the text). 6 January 2015. 

The review finds Tom Hardy's mellifluous voice very good value in this low-budget drive-time drama but criticizes the script for trying too hard to make the protagonist likable and the visuals for being repetitive. It concludes the film will work better on television than in cinemas.

[Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/locke-film-review-tom-hardy-with-his-mellifluous-voice-is-very-good-value-9265389.html)

## Slant Magazine — Ed Gonzalez

Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 20 April 2014. 

The critic finds Knight's screenplay thrilling in its prismatic phone-call structure but faults the literalizing symbolism and theatricality that reduce it to square drama therapy.

[Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/locke/)

## Financial Times — Antonia Quirke

Rating 2/5. 16 April 2014. 

Locke is a daring British film that sounds rather contrived when you try to explain it, and yet works with silky ease. It is a movie with a pace that never slackens, and yet still allows you to feel you’re being given time to recollect, reflect, look about.

[Read the review](https://www.ft.com/content/0549111a-c55e-11e3-89a9-00144feabdc0)

## The Wrap

Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 24 April 2014. 

The critic calls the film a daring, riveting drama that succeeds brilliantly as a theatrical experiment confined to one car. Tom Hardy's contained, tour de force performance is singled out as the captivating anchor that creates a complete character through voice alone.

[Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/locke-review-tom-hardy-captivates-one-man-road-trip/)

## Collider — Matt Goldberg

Rating B+. 25 April 2014. 

The critic finds the film a surprisingly captivating picture created under its strict constraints. He singles out Tom Hardy's meticulous line delivery and ability to hold the screen alone for praise.

[Read the review](https://collider.com/locke-movie-review/)

## The Playlist — The Playlist Staff

Rating B+. 23 April 2014. Festival review. 

The review praises the film as an impressive achievement that offers a complete portrait of its protagonist through nuanced writing and performance, highlighting the lead actor's range.

[Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/review-steven-knights-locke-starring-tom-hardy-is-an-impressive-achievement-20140423/)

## Den of Geek — Simon Brew

Rating 4/5. 18 April 2014. 

The film is a rewarding and at times brilliant tight thriller driven by a magnetic lead performance. It singles out Tom Hardy's steadfastly calm portrayal as the key to selling the single-location concept.

[Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/locke-review/)

## Digital Spy — Stella Papamichael

Rating 4/5. 14 April 2014. 

This is a well-judged, well-acted absorbing drama and an exciting break from the norm. It singles out Tom Hardy's mesmerising performance for praise, heightened by the moving background.

[Read the review](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a556697/locke-review-tom-hardy-is-brilliant-in-unconventional-road-movie/)

## The Skinny — Alan Bett

Rating 4/5. 28 February 2014. 

Locke is a thrilling single-person piece that must be considered a modern equivalent of Beckett. It singles out the intense close-ups on Tom Hardy's face and the visual stimulation of reflections in the car for praise, while noting the obvious metaphors as a minor flaw.

[Read the review](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/cineskinny/reviews/locke-film_review)

## /Film — Peter Sciretta

Rating 7/10. 19 January 2014. Festival review. 

The critic finds the film an incredible acting exercise centered on Tom Hardy's solo performance but notes it functions more as a one-man play than a fully cinematic experience, lacking visual dynamism.

[Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/529945/locke-an-85-minute-car-ride-with-tom-hardy-and-his-phone-sundance-2014-review/)

## Paste — Geoff Berkshire

Rating 6.7. 23 April 2014. 

The review is mixed on the minimalist exercise, finding the writing contrived and themes heavy-handed while ultimately viewing it as a banal midlife crisis tale. It praises Tom Hardy's genuine performance and the film's hypnotic visual style.

[Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/locke)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/locke.md