PVC-1

(2007) ***1/2

This work of Columbian cinema was taken in one continuous shot. Although dizzying towards the end,  it works because it throws you in to every scene with an uncomfortable realness. It opens with Benjamin and Jose, along with two others, driving down a little country road to a small rancho where they hold a family at gunpoint and demand 15 million pesos. It turns out the family doesn't have any money, the robbers strap a homemade bomb made of PVC pipe around the mother, Ofelia's, neck.

What PVC-1 lacks in plot it makes up for in intensity. Ofelia, her husband, and eldest daughter make the trek to the nearest town where they meet up with Jairo, an anti-explosive specialist. Any moment Ofelia or her husband Simon fidget with the pipe, it starts beeping and you have no idea when, or if, it's going to blow. I would recommend this movie to anyone because it's down-to-earth enough that it won't give you nightmares, but dude prepare yourself for 85 minutes of teeth-grinding nervous tension!