A gritty action thriller set entirely inside one man’s prison cell, Jailbroken follows hardened criminal and inmate Joe (Bryan Larkin) as he attempts to negotiate the release of his family from a gang of murderous kidnappers. With only a contraband mobile phone (jailbroken, geddit) to work with, Joe’s gruff telephone is pushed to the limit, and he finds himself immensely compromised as his family’s captors make their terrible demands. It’s like Taken, if the phone call had been the whole movie.
Front and centre for the whole time, Larkin gives a captivating performance as Joe. The whole thing rides on his broad shoulders, and he capably takes it all. He’s ably supported by Armin Karima as shifty cellmate Naz, who gives Larkin someone to bounce off of that’s not just a voice on the phone. Veteran actor David Nayman (Bull) also pops up as an even shiftier prison guard, injecting a sense of grubby authenticity that the actor’s particularly gifted at. If it all starts to feel a bit alpha male-heavy, then The Descent star Shauna Macdonald serves as some relief, albeit as a voice over the phone.
Director Vasily Chiprina, directing from a screenplay by Raymond Friel, doesn’t let up. The film utilises Joe’s cell to drive home his sense of desperation and isolation, the walls seeming to close in as his plight worsens. It’s claustrophobic and tense, and the most successful film based around one phone call since Tom Hardy’s Locke. The Tom Hardy comparisons don’t end there either – there’s a prison cell brawl that’s reminiscent of the actor’s Bronson.
Given its single-location setting and ultra-low budget, Jailbroken has its limitations, but it uses them to its advantage.
JAILBROKEN premiered at FrightFest Glasgow on March 5, 2026.
