Game Review: Band Frontman Jason Williamson Assumes Character in Sceptical Examination at Ecstasy Generation Era
Produced by Bristol sound co-founder Geoff Barrow, this sharp-edged if undernourished first film turns a sceptical eye on 90s rave culture. Self-serving drug user David (Marc Bessant) first robs an passed-out supplier, then in another flashback tries to burgle his own family home. Before you can say, he's upside down in the wreckage of his car in a forest – and subject to the angry eye of the Poacher (Sleaford Mods frontman Jason Williamson). Declining to free David, with impatience toward townies, he is broken Britain personified: “You’re one of those noisy cunts from up on the heath.”
A Shaky Start and Grimly Amusing Confrontation
The film begins uncertainly, spending too long 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 primarily out for themselves – is clearly conveyed. But these brief episodes are too thin to adequately prepare us for what to expect when the Poacher turns up, fuming after David kills his dog. Still, a darkly funny standoff takes hold – David eager to get away; the Poacher withholding his jerrycan of cider, determined to soaking him instead in embittered discourse. Williamson, exuding ponderous menace in the role, is evocative of Michael Smiley.
Visual Flair and Promo-Inspired Vibe
Just a single important plot development, but it results in a hilariously staged chaotic run on the woodland paths that dips close to folk horror. Filmmaker John Minton at last unleashes with his showy imagery: where he was hunkered down doing artful shots of bugs in headlights in the early stages, he now lets rip with the full psychedelic 21-gun salute, soundtracked to a wild organ version of Ravel’s Boléro. The movie resembles an extended promo than a complete narrative, but there’s enough bold visuals to suggest that Minton could follow Jonathan Glazer, Garth Jennings and others into successfully graduating from the Brit music promo scene.
The film releases in UK and Irish theaters from 17 November.
