Walled In

The story centers on the Malestrazza Building, a desolate, isolated structure with a dark history of murders and entombment. It features a forbidden eighth floor and a hidden central shaft that serves as a literal and symbolic tomb. The building’s interior becomes a claustrophobic maze where walls, cement, and secret passages shape the characters’ fear and actions.

🔒 Confinement

The film uses physical entrapment as a central device, with Sam trapped in cement-filled spaces and a confined shaft that becomes her tomb. The architecture itself forces dependence, fear, and desperate attempts at escape. The claustrophobic environment mirrors the characters’ psychological cages. Space is weaponized to control and weaponize others.

🕯️ Obsession

Malestrazza treats the building as his masterpiece, orchestrating murders as a ritual of power. Mary’s protective obsession with her family leads her to imprison the architect to shield them from consequences. Jimmy’s fixation on obedience and control intensifies the danger inside the walls. Obsession drives cycles of manipulation and violence throughout the story.

🩸 Revenge

Mary’s motive stems from the murder of her husband and daughter, Julie, propelling her to take extreme measures against Malestrazza. The survivors’ actions are colored by past traumas and the desire to avenge loved ones, often blurring moral lines. The conclusion reveals how revenge can perpetuate harm rather than resolve it. The film ties personal vendettas to a larger, grim history of the building.