The work of Portishead co-founder the musician-producer, this scabrous though slight debut feature turns a sceptical eye on 90s rave culture. Venal drug user David (Marc Bessant) initially steals from an unconscious dealer, then in another flashback tries to break into his own parents. In no time, he's overturned in the remains 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 city dwellers, he is broken Britain embodied: “You’re one of those noisy cunts from up on the heath.”
A Shaky Start and Grimly Amusing Duel
The film begins uncertainly, spending too long on meticulously detailing David’s attempt to extricate himself from his safety harness, while awkwardly transitioning into past scenes of his normal activities. The bigger point – that the rave-era youth were primarily out for themselves – is clearly conveyed. But these vignettes are insufficiently developed to adequately prepare us for what to expect when the Woodsman turns up, fuming after David strangles his dog. Still, a darkly funny standoff unfolds – David desperate to escape; the Poacher withholding his jerrycan of cider, determined to dousing him instead in resentful talk. Williamson, exuding ponderous menace in the role, is reminiscent of Michael Smiley.
Visual Flair and Music Video Vibe
There is only one important plot development, but it results in a hilariously staged rampage on the woodland paths that dips close to rural terror. Filmmaker 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 psychedelic grand display, 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 strident imagery to suggest that Minton could follow Jonathan Glazer, Garth Jennings and others into successfully graduating from the UK video industry.
The film releases in British and Irish theaters from November 17.
