The work of Bristol sound co-founder Geoff Barrow, this sharp-edged though slight debut feature casts a critical gaze on 90s rave culture. Self-serving pillhead David (Marc Bessant) first robs an unconscious dealer, then in another flashback tries to break into his own family home. Before you can say, he's upside down in the wreckage of his car in a woodland – 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 broken Britain embodied: “You’re one of those loud individuals 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 extricate himself from his safety harness, while clumsily segueing into past scenes of his everyday life. The central theme – that the rave-era youth were primarily out for number one – is clearly conveyed. But these brief episodes are insufficiently developed to adequately prepare us for what to expect when the Woodsman turns up, enraged after David kills his dog. Nevertheless, a grimly amusing standoff unfolds – David desperate to escape; the Poacher denying his container of scrumpy, determined to soaking him instead in resentful talk. Williamson, exuding ponderous menace in the role, is reminiscent of Michael Smiley.
Stylish Imagery and Music Video Vibe
There is only one important plot development, but it leads to a comically executed rampage on the forest trails that dips close to folk horror. Filmmaker John Minton finally gets to go all in with his ostentatious visuals: where he was hunkered down doing artful shots of insects in the light in the early stages, he now goes all out with the full psychedelic grand display, 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 follow Jonathan Glazer, Garth Jennings and others into successfully graduating from the UK video industry.
The film releases in UK and Irish theaters from November 17.
