Produced by Bristol sound co-founder Geoff Barrow, this scabrous if slight debut feature turns a sceptical eye on 90s rave culture. Venal pillhead David (Marc Bessant) initially steals from an unconscious dealer, then in a later recollection tries to break into his own parents. In no time, he's upside down in the wreckage of his car in a woodland – and subject to the angry eye of the Woodsman (vocalist Jason Williamson). Declining to free David, with impatience toward city dwellers, he is a fractured society embodied: “You’re one of those loud individuals from up on the heath.”
A Shaky Start and Grimly Amusing Confrontation
The film begins uncertainly, spending too long on meticulously detailing David’s attempt to free himself from his safety harness, while awkwardly transitioning into flashbacks of his everyday life. The bigger point – that the rave-era youth were mainly focused on number one – is clearly conveyed. But these vignettes are too thin to adequately prepare us for what to expect when the Poacher arrives, fuming after David strangles his dog. Still, a darkly funny duel unfolds – David desperate to escape; the Poacher denying his container of cider, determined to soaking him instead in resentful talk. Williamson, projecting ponderous menace in the role, is evocative of Michael Smiley.
Visual Flair and Promo-Inspired Sensibility
There is only one important plot development, but it leads to a hilariously staged rampage on the forest trails that dips close to folk horror. Filmmaker John Minton at last unleashes with his showy imagery: where he was hunkered down doing impressionistic closeups of bugs in headlights in the early stages, he now goes all out with the full lysergic 21-gun salute, soundtracked to a wild organ version 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 follow Jonathan Glazer, Garth Jennings and others into making the leap from the Brit music promo scene.
The film is in British and Irish cinemas from 17 November.
