Film Analysis: Band Frontman Jason Williamson Assumes Role in Critical Examination at 90s Rave Culture

Helmed by Bristol sound co-founder the musician-producer, this sharp-edged though undernourished debut feature casts a critical gaze on the ecstasy-fueled club scene. Self-serving drug user David (Marc Bessant) first robs an passed-out supplier, then in another flashback tries to break into 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 wrathful 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 Grimly Amusing Confrontation

The film begins uncertainly, lingering excessively on pedantically chronicling David’s attempt to free himself from his safety harness, while awkwardly transitioning into flashbacks of his normal activities. The bigger point – that the rave-era youth were mainly focused on number one – is firmly made. But these vignettes are too thin to adequately prepare us for what to expect when the Poacher 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 soaking him instead in embittered discourse. Williamson, projecting ponderous menace in the role, is reminiscent of Michael Smiley.

Visual Flair and Promo-Inspired Vibe

There is only one key story turn, but it results in a hilariously staged chaotic run on the forest trails that dips close to rural terror. Director John Minton at last unleashes with his showy imagery: where he was focused intently doing artful shots of bugs in headlights in the early stages, he now goes all out with the full lysergic grand display, accompanied by a wild organ version of Ravel’s Boléro. Game feels more like an extended promo than a fully fledged drama, but there’s enough strident imagery to suggest that Minton could emulate Jonathan Glazer, Garth Jennings et al into making the leap from the Brit music promo scene.

The film releases in UK and Irish cinemas from 17 November.