It’s always so good to stumble across a totally unknown film that is as good as anything one has recently seen. This was a very tightly written and filmed thriller with no excess material in any way – but events were not rushed and where the tempo needed to slow down for dramatic effect, then this was done very expertly and effectively. But where scnes demanded extension e.g. the search in the woods, this was done very well and effectively.
The characters were very strikingly ordinary – although their actions and the events that they got caught up in were far from this. The remote and beautiful Scottish scenery gave a marvelous sense of an alien place, certainly as far as the two central characters and their London backgrounds were concerned.
The use of stillness and, particularly silence, was one of the major plus points of the film, particularly in the scene towards the end where one of the main characters had to admit what had happened – but as he started, sound faded and we never heard what he actually said. Very effective and tension inducing.
It reminded me in many ways of Blood Simple – not as darkly Gothic as that film but with the stress on taking part in terrible events and these events spiraling out of control – this aspect was shared.