Produced by 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) first robs an unconscious dealer, then in a later recollection tries to burgle his own family home. In no time, he's upside down 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 townies, he is a fractured society personified: “You’re one of those noisy cunts from up on the heath.”
A Shaky Start and Darkly Funny Confrontation
Game gets off to a shaky start, spending too long on pedantically chronicling David’s attempt to extricate himself from his seatbelt, while clumsily segueing into flashbacks of his everyday life. The central theme – that the ecstasy generation were primarily out for number one – is firmly made. But these vignettes are insufficiently developed to properly prime us for what to expect when the Woodsman turns up, enraged after David kills his dog. Still, a darkly funny duel takes hold – David eager to get away; the Woodsman denying his container of cider, determined to dousing him instead in resentful talk. Williamson, exuding heavy threat in the role, is reminiscent of Michael Smiley.
Stylish Imagery and Music Video Sensibility
There is only one key story turn, but it results in a hilariously staged rampage on the forest trails that veers toward folk horror. Director John Minton finally gets to go all in with his ostentatious visuals: where he was hunkered down doing artful shots of bugs in headlights in the early stages, he now goes all out 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 fully fledged drama, but there’s enough strident imagery to suggest that Minton could emulate Jonathan Glazer, Garth Jennings et al into successfully graduating from the Brit music promo scene.
The film is in British and Irish theaters from November 17.
