Jack Samms (Patrick Barnitt, SE7EN) comes home one night and is surprised by masked assailant Trick (Johnny Alonso, SERIAL MOM) who reveals that his wife Rona (Sunny Doench, A DARKER REALITY) and her lover Sean Justice (Kevin Sorbo, KULL THE CONQUEROR) have been buried alive with only seventy-five minutes of oxygen (and he's got a live video feed to prove it). Jack appeals to his business partner Garrison (Bruce Davison, X-MEN) to get him the ransom money, but he may not be able to get in time. Beat cops Scott and Epperson (co-directors Kipp Tribble and Derik Wingo) are drawn into the case when they answer a call from Sean's landlady who has discovered that his apartment has been broken into. When they discover photos of Rona - recognizable as a TV commercial and B-movie actress - in Sean's apartment, Jack becomes the prime suspect in their disappearance. Meanwhile, Rona and Sean attempt to dig their way out of their premature grave.

The second feature directorial effort for both actor Kipp Tribble and make-up effects artist Derik Wingo, COFFIN is definitely Redbox(tm) filler but not without interest. The set-up is a bit painful thanks to a SAW-esque manipulative villain who mistakes shouting for menace ("I'm a man who puts people in situations, and it's how they react to those situations that's key! And this is your situation...") and an uninteresting protagonist; but once you realize that the film is going to be a more conventional thriller rather than another "torture porn" cash-in, you're in for a fairly diverting thriller. The film picks up half-way through by complicating the plot for both Jack and Trick, and thankfully takes a different twist than the one I was expecting (and I have to wonder if I should give the writers/directors credit for subtly misdirecting the viewer to expect a more intelligence-insulting reversal). Although things do tie together, the script isn't as smart as if thinks it is (but it does provide a satisfying coda). Davison is professional as usual in his limited screentime (even Sorbo is decent, except when tackling MACBETH), but the rest of the central and supporting cast is uneven (fairing better in action than exposition). The Red One photography is fairly slick and sometimes inventive, and the production values seem solid (suggesting that the filmmaking duo might achieve something more interesting with a better script).