Produced by Bristol sound co-founder the musician-producer, this sharp-edged though undernourished first film casts a critical gaze on the ecstasy-fueled club scene. Self-serving drug user David (Marc Bessant) initially steals from an unconscious dealer, then in another flashback tries to break into his own parents. Before you can say, he's upside down in the wreckage of his car in a forest – and subject to the angry eye of the Woodsman (Sleaford Mods frontman Jason Williamson). Declining to free David, with no time for townies, he is a fractured society personified: “You’re one of those loud individuals from up on the heath.”
Unsteady Opening and Darkly Funny Duel
The film begins uncertainly, spending too long on meticulously detailing David’s attempt to free himself from his seatbelt, while clumsily segueing into flashbacks of his normal activities. The bigger point – that the ecstasy generation were primarily out for themselves – is clearly conveyed. But these brief episodes are too thin to adequately prepare us for what to expect when the Woodsman turns up, enraged after David strangles his dog. Nevertheless, a darkly funny standoff unfolds – David desperate to escape; the Poacher withholding his jerrycan of cider, intent on dousing him instead in embittered discourse. Williamson, projecting ponderous menace in the role, is reminiscent of Michael Smiley.
Stylish Imagery and Promo-Inspired Sensibility
There is only one important plot development, but it results in a comically executed rampage on the woodland paths that veers toward rural terror. Director John Minton finally gets to go all in with his ostentatious visuals: where he was hunkered down doing impressionistic closeups of insects in the light in the opening part, he now lets rip with the full lysergic 21-gun salute, accompanied by a frenzied keyboard rendition of Ravel’s Boléro. The movie resembles an elongated music video than a fully fledged drama, but there’s enough bold visuals to suggest that Minton could emulate Jonathan Glazer, Garth Jennings and others into making the leap from the UK video industry.
The film releases in UK and Irish cinemas from 17 November.
