Helmed by Bristol sound co-founder Geoff Barrow, this sharp-edged though undernourished debut feature turns a sceptical eye on the ecstasy-fueled club scene. Venal drug user David (the actor) first robs an passed-out supplier, 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 forest – and subject to the angry eye of the Poacher (vocalist Jason Williamson). Declining to free David, with impatience toward townies, he is a fractured society personified: “You’re one of those noisy cunts from up on the heath.”
A Shaky Start and Grimly Amusing Confrontation
The film begins uncertainly, lingering excessively on pedantically chronicling David’s attempt to extricate himself from his safety harness, while awkwardly transitioning into flashbacks of his everyday life. The central theme – that the ecstasy generation were mainly focused on themselves – is clearly conveyed. But these brief episodes are too thin to properly prime us for what to expect when the Woodsman turns up, fuming after David strangles his dog. Still, a darkly funny duel takes hold – David eager to get away; the Woodsman denying his container of cider, determined to soaking him instead in embittered discourse. Williamson, projecting ponderous menace in the role, is reminiscent of Michael Smiley.
Visual Flair and Music Video Sensibility
Just a single important plot development, but it results in a comically executed rampage on the woodland paths that veers toward rural terror. Filmmaker John Minton at last unleashes with his showy imagery: where he was focused intently doing artful shots of insects in the light in the opening part, he now lets rip with the full psychedelic grand display, accompanied by 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 follow Jonathan Glazer, Garth Jennings et al into making the leap from the UK video industry.
Game is in UK and Irish cinemas from 17 November.
