Helmed by Bristol sound co-founder the musician-producer, this sharp-edged though undernourished first film turns a sceptical eye on 90s rave culture. Self-serving pillhead David (Marc Bessant) first robs an unconscious dealer, then in a later recollection tries to break into his own parents. In no time, he's overturned in the wreckage of his car in a woodland – and subject to the angry eye of the Poacher (vocalist Jason Williamson). Declining to free David, with impatience toward city dwellers, he is a fractured society embodied: “You’re one of those noisy cunts from up on the heath.”
A Shaky Start and Darkly Funny Confrontation
The film begins uncertainly, spending too long on meticulously detailing David’s attempt to free himself from his seatbelt, while awkwardly transitioning into past scenes of his everyday life. The central theme – that the ecstasy generation were mainly focused on number one – is firmly made. But these brief episodes are too thin to properly prime us for what to expect when the Poacher arrives, enraged after David kills his dog. Nevertheless, a grimly amusing standoff takes hold – David eager to get away; the Poacher denying his container of scrumpy, intent on soaking him instead in resentful talk. Williamson, exuding ponderous menace in the role, is reminiscent of Michael Smiley.
Visual Flair and Promo-Inspired Sensibility
Just a single key story turn, but it leads to a comically executed rampage on the woodland paths that veers toward folk horror. Filmmaker John Minton finally gets to go all in with his ostentatious visuals: where he was focused intently doing impressionistic closeups of insects in the light in the early stages, he now lets rip with the full psychedelic grand display, soundtracked to a wild organ version of Ravel’s Boléro. The movie resembles an elongated music video than a complete narrative, but there’s enough strident imagery 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 British and Irish cinemas from November 17.
