Produced by Portishead co-founder the musician-producer, this sharp-edged though undernourished first film turns a sceptical eye on the ecstasy-fueled club scene. Self-serving pillhead David (the actor) first robs an passed-out supplier, then in a later recollection tries to break into his own parents. Before you can say, he's upside down in the remains of his car in a forest – and subject to the angry eye of the Woodsman (vocalist Jason Williamson). Refusing to extricate David, with impatience toward city dwellers, 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
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 mainly focused on number one – is clearly conveyed. But these vignettes are too thin to adequately prepare us for what to expect when the Woodsman arrives, enraged after David kills his dog. Still, a darkly funny duel takes hold – David eager to get away; the Woodsman withholding his jerrycan of cider, determined to dousing him instead in embittered discourse. Williamson, projecting heavy threat in the role, is reminiscent of Michael Smiley.
Visual Flair and Music Video Vibe
Just a single important plot development, but it leads to a comically executed chaotic run on the woodland paths that dips close to rural terror. Filmmaker John Minton finally gets to go all in with his showy imagery: where he was hunkered down doing impressionistic closeups of bugs in headlights in the opening part, he now lets rip with the full lysergic grand display, soundtracked to a frenzied keyboard rendition 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 successfully graduating from the UK video industry.
Game is in UK and Irish theaters from 17 November.
