GAME — GAME( Blu- Ray)

GAME is an artfully paced (for want of a better word) Thriller. The 2025 British film is set in the late 1990s and is (largely) focused on a crashed/ upside-down car in a seemingly isolated wooded area. Inside the car is a trapped, aging raver/ thief (Marc Bessant)- he’s first tormented by his situation, then by animals, and finally by a poacher- played by Jason Williamson, lead singer of the post-punk duo Sleaford Mods. Here we have a Ltd edition Blu-ray release of the film from Bristol-based Invada Records & Anti Worlds; it includes two commentary tracks & a few other things.

GAME is the debut film from director/ co-writer John Minton. The other two writing credits go to lead actor Marc Bessant and Geoff Barrow, who was one of the founding members of the influential trip-hop project Portishead.

The one-hour-and-twenty-five-minute film really felt like a game of two halves. For the first thirty-seven minutes of the picture, we focus on the upside-down David (Bessant)- who we find out via a series of flashbacks is a thief( stealing drugs/ money), rather shifty, oh and an ageing raver. The forest location is filmed with true wonder- with the camera being allowed to settle on trees, plants, leaves, spinning spiders, darting foxes, and inquisitive dogs. This part of the film is very slowly paced- with no soundtrack really, aside from the pumping rave music of the flashbacks.

The second, and in my mind the most interesting part, starts with the appearance of a nameless poacher (Williamson). He first appears in a lightly unsettling black balaclava, fairly soon revealing his stubbly & wonderfully expressive face. He’s decided he won't release the stuck-up side raver, but instead is seemingly awaiting his death, with the films tag line been “I’ve watched someone die before…takes a while sometimes “.

In its last twenty or so minutes, the film totally kicks into a rewarding blend of tripped-out imagery and paranoia-infused stalking, with the whole thing resolving in a surprising, if very English location.

Both leads are good- though I’d say Williamson steals the show, as he sells well the slightly creepy poacher, who shifts between under the surface distaste/ anger, glum/ grim curiosity, and being totally off his nuts.

I can totally understand/appreciate the need for the slower pace/ more art house shots of the first half of the film. But I’m afraid it just seems to drag on far too long- you see, firstly our ageing raver is far from a likeable character, and secondly there’s just not enough going on/ happening to amp up any kind of real tension/ edge.

There is no doubt that Minton shows promise in the film, going from the wonderful captured nature shots, the cluttered/ upside down claustrophobia of the car, and the demented/ tensely paranoid later scenes. But he just needs to know when to clip/ cut scenes. So, with that in mind, I’d say GAME is a promising debut film from Minton, and if you like arty thrillers- with trippy & unhinged stings in their tails- give this a go.

Moving on to this region-free Blu-ray release, we get a few new extras. First up, we have two commentary tracks- one with Director John Minton & Director of Photography Ross James. And the other with Actors Marc Bessant & Jason Williamson. I played the first of these, and it was a informative/ interesting directors track. They begin by talking about the opening/ pre credit scene- we find out it’s not Williamson who's stalking the pheasant, but one of the pair's friends- they meant to re-shoot this scene, but are now happy with it. We find out the film was all shot around a wedding venue/ outdoor space to the south of Bristol. They discuss how they got the car in the film from eBay, and how it was unfortunate that it was white, as it was problematic when filming. They discuss how Bessant could only hang upside down for half an hour at a time; when he did it for an hour, he wasn’t well at all. We find out that, for shooting the car, it was raised up- with the camera set on top of a saddlebag. They talk about how the picture took a total of ten days to film, with half of these being spent on the car. Later on, they talk about the pub location in the film, which back in the 90’s was a popular spot with ravers. They point out some of their favourite shots, and discuss the film's resolve.

Otherwise, we get a behind-the-scenes featurette (26.14) which takes in behind-the-scenes footage and some interviews. Finally, we have a trailer.

We were sent the Limited Blu-ray release of the film for review- it features a numbered slip. Inside the case, we have a reversible cover and a fourteen-page colour booklet- this features an interview with the director, loads of stills, full credits, oh a reproduction of the flyer for the rave featured in the film during flashbacks. There’s also a green card inlay- this feature a intricate stencilled cut design of the release's poster art, which is very neat.

In conclusion, GAME certainly shows promise, and I’d say if you like more arty thrillers, then give it a go. I’ll give the film a two and a half mark, but knock it up half a mark to three due to the release's presentation.