The Age of Commercialism

Fantastic!

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

As far as craft is concerned, Shallow Grave is an impressive film. Danny Boyle is a stylish filmmaker and despite the fact that this is his first directorial effort, that style shines through. This is a very good-looking film with excellent set design and color scheming, as well as great camera-work. There's also an undeniable giddiness and energy to the film. It feels like the product of a talented guy who loves movies and has finally been given the opportunity to make his own; he's having fun, and it's infectious.It really is a shame then that I couldn't get into this. For all of its style and unique energy, this movie ultimately failed to engage on an intellectual or emotional level. There are potentially good themes at work here as we see these three friends devolve into increasingly nefarious behavior: greed, corruption, and the inability to trust even those closest to you. But ultimately these themes aren't so much explored as they are presented. I don't feel as if I've gained any insight into the dark impulses of man as the credits roll, even if I have been shown them.Perhaps the reason for this is my inability to really get on board with these characters. The performances themselves are actually quite good, with Ewan McGregor in particular giving a great portrayal of Alex which (intentional or not) is reminiscent of Malcolm McDowell as another (more memorable) Alex. However, I never felt like I really understood these characters or their motivations. They were introduced to be relatively immature and cruel in the beginning of the film as they torment some prospective roommates, but they essentially go from 0 to 60 from there without much setup. It wasn't so much a descent into criminality as a leap off of a cliff, which felt at odds with the fact that at least two of the three main characters were clearly well- off, intelligent, and successful (doctor and accountant). The film tries to make a grand statement - at the outset it claims that the actions we are about to witness are things that any individual is capable of, even those who we would typically trust or deem honorable. It tries to reveal the primal, selfish nature of humans and the potential corrupting power of greed. But that theme doesn't ring true because of the lack of setup given to these characters. The quickness with which they jump to the heinous crimes they commit gives the impression that they were already morally compromised and sadistic to begin with. It doesn't feel like I'm watching average, decent people who have been seduced to violence by greed. Rather, I feel like I'm watching the story of these three specific opportunists who already lack empathy for others and, not surprisingly, spiral downwards when put in the situation that the film sets up. The universality of the theme just doesn't land.So then, what if you just forget the failed thematic goal and view the film as just that - a stylish thriller about three bad friends doing bad things? I think your mileage will still vary. There just wasn't enough intrigue in the plot for it to really hold the film up on its own accord, and the characters aren't colorful or fleshed-out enough to stand next to similar creations like the aforementioned Alex DeLarge. Beyond the style, great visuals, and giddy energy, the film just doesn't have much else going for it.

Juliet Miller (Kerry Fox), David Stephens (Christopher Eccleston), and Alex Law (Ewan McGregor) are three flatmates looking for someone to rent the fourth room. They are all sarcastic, sharp-tongued, and generally mean-spirited. They agree on the charismatic Hugo (Keith Allen) but don't know his criminal activities. When they discover his dead body, they also find a suitcase full of money.Before Danny Boyle's breakthrough movie 'Trainspotting', this is his first big screen debut. The leads are not likable. They are all unlikeable selfish untrustworthy jerks. It's dark. It has three amazing performances. And it has a great Hitchcockian style. It is sharp and brilliant. It has some funny moments especially as they skewer the roommate interviews. It builds up to great tension. It's just good dark fun.

At his best, Danny Boyle is one of our finest living filmmakers. And if this 1st feature isn't quite up to the level of the best of his work, it still shows one heck of a lot of talent.That said, while enjoyable and full of energy and solid performances, this didn't hold up as well on 2nd viewing as I'd hoped. This caper drama about 3 self obsessed, comically awful 20 somethings who fall into a bag of money and slowly turn on each other has a lot of dark cynical fun in it, but there are just too many logic holes and too many character leaps to be fully satisfying. A lot of the twists are clever (although some are predictable) but rather than characters evolving, they seem to lurch suddenly on their way down the rat hole to beyond forgivable. You accept the sudden transformations because they're there, but it did leave me wondering 'when did THAT suddenly happen to the character'. In turn, that underlines the film's somewhat cartoony nature, which makes sure it's never too disturbing to enjoy no matter how awfully everyone behaves, but that also robs it of the chance of being a deeper film than just a fun, smart genre exercise.With "Trainspotting" Boyle went on to find that perfect balance of surface fun, and deeper meanings, but this is a good first step.

Danny Boyle's directorial debut remains a satisfying, stylish and twisted little black comedy thriller. It features fledgling wannabes Kerry Fox, Christopher Eccleston and Ewan McGregor as yuppie flatmates taking in a new lodger to share the bills. It isn't long before Hugo the lodger is found dead in bed from an overdose and the three smug and selfish twenty-somethings find themselves in possession of a suitcase full of loot.Naturally, they want the money, but what to do about Hugo? Then there's the little matter of the two gangland killers who are looking for Hugo and the dough.The scene is set for a grisly and wicked ramble through the intricate highways and byways of body disposal, murder and duplicitous double-crossing.Part thriller, part jet black satire on the corrosive dysfunction characterising Thatcher's self-centred and greed-obsessed 90s babies, Boyle has a keen eye for social comment and a scalpel sharp sense of morbid humour.There is much to enjoy, notably Eccleston's mental devolution from straight-laced and OCD accountant to paranoid and murderous loft dweller, Fox's moral dissipation to ruthless femme-fatale using sexual promiscuity to get what she wants, and McGregor's persona downturn from confident, wired and irresponsible journo to nervy and fearful potential victim in line.It's great nasty fun, with pleasingly reverent nods to Hitchcock, and the payoff (if you don't know it) is a wry little cracker.A deliciously cruel gem of a movie.