Produced by Portishead co-founder Geoff Barrow, this sharp-edged if slight debut feature casts a critical gaze on 90s rave culture. Venal drug user David (Marc Bessant) initially steals from an passed-out supplier, then in a later recollection tries to burgle his own family home. Before you can say, he's upside down in the remains of his car in a woodland – and subject to the angry eye of the Woodsman (Sleaford Mods frontman Jason Williamson). Refusing to extricate David, with impatience toward townies, he is a fractured society embodied: “You’re one of those noisy cunts from up on the heath.”
A Shaky Start and Darkly Funny Duel
The film begins uncertainly, spending too long on pedantically chronicling David’s attempt to free himself from his seatbelt, while awkwardly transitioning into past scenes of his everyday life. The central theme – that the rave-era youth were mainly focused on number one – is firmly made. But these brief episodes are too thin to adequately prepare us for what to expect when the Poacher arrives, fuming after David kills his dog. Nevertheless, a grimly amusing duel unfolds – David desperate to escape; the Woodsman withholding his jerrycan of cider, determined to soaking him instead in resentful talk. Williamson, projecting heavy threat in the role, is evocative of Michael Smiley.
Visual Flair and Promo-Inspired Vibe
Just a single important plot development, but it results in a hilariously staged chaotic run on the forest trails that veers toward rural terror. Filmmaker John Minton finally gets to go all in with his showy imagery: where he was hunkered down doing artful shots of bugs in headlights in the opening part, he now lets rip with the full psychedelic 21-gun salute, accompanied by a frenzied keyboard rendition of Ravel’s Boléro. Game feels more like an elongated music video than a complete narrative, but there’s enough bold visuals to suggest that Minton could emulate Jonathan Glazer, Garth Jennings et al into successfully graduating from the UK video industry.
The film is in UK and Irish cinemas from November 17.
