Directed by:
Danny BoyleScreenplay:
John HodgeCinematography:
Brian TufanoComposer:
Simon BoswellCast:
Kerry Fox, Christopher Eccleston, Ewan McGregor, Ken Stott, Keith Allen, Gary Lewis, Peter Mullan, Tony Curran, John Hodge, Frances Low, John Bett (more)VOD (2)
Plots(1)
Juliet (Fox), David (Eccleston) and Alex (McGregor) find that their new reclusive roommate has not left the bedroom for days. After kicking in the door they discover his drug over-dosed corpse and a suitcase full of money! Fatefully choosing to keep the money, they know they have to get rid of the remains. But the body won't stay buried and a careless trail from the shallow grave leads the police and two money-hungry thugs back to the trio. And as the stakes get higher, so does the body count, not to mention their paranoia which is quickly putting their friendships in jeopardy forever! (Channel 4)
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Reviews (7)
Danny Boyle has a knack for getting the most out of the minimum. In this case, it was decent value for money, which he still had to scrape together. But it paid off. The beginning is relatively weak and in order for the film to reach its thrilling end, the viewer must endure a significant number of mistakes and dead ends, but as a whole it is enjoyable and the effort is visible, so there is no reason not to accept the situation. The most annoying thing is the blatant made-for-TV production design, the irritating accent of the main characters, and some incomprehensible scenes where several minutes of crucial connections and key information seem to be missing. Even so, this project is worth seeing, at the very least it was the launching pad of Ewan McGregor’s career.
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The film has a good idea in the exposed body of a junkie who left behind a lot of money. However, Boyle had to break the whole plot mightily over his knee twice to get to the end. Thankfully, he showed how much talent he has and very skillfully skated through both a regular psycho-thriller and a distinctive variation of Dostoevsky’s "Crime and Punishment." Admittedly, the film eventually ended up being shallowly cheap, but that made the point all the more entertaining. Genius or incompetence? I got caught up in it and had fun at the same time, so thanks, Danny!
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The first few minutes make it clear that the whole film is going to be in a rather kinky and perverted vein, which is of course not unreasonable considering the central trio. Shallow Grave is a wonderfully playful film, whose greatest strength is in the gradation, the perfect directing of the actors, and the occasional "lightening", or rather black humor, which is scarce here, but even in a few moments it is excellent (carrying a body down a staircase, for example). This is the Danny Boyle I like. His early work is almost an affair of the heart for me, and along with Trainspotting I rank Shallow Grave as one of the best, if not the best, Boyle has ever made. It doesn't yet have a fat budget or Hollywood stars par excellence, it's all so "pure" and honest and you can feel how lovingly it's made. I really, really liked it.
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Shallow Grave is exactly the type of thriller I'm not too fond of, and there are plenty of them made on this subject, but I have to say in Danny Boyle's rendition this one worked very well for me! A hell of a black-humoured, energetic and suspenseful ride from start to finish! I had a lot more fun than I did with A Simple Plan. I recommend it to anyone who hasn't seen it.75%
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"Is he still here?" - "Yeah, he couldn't start the car." I've had the DVDs of Danny Boyle's films at home for a while, but I've been putting them off for a long time. Why, you ask? I can't get my head around that now after the amazing Shallow Grave. Wow, that was something! I don't think I was breathing for the last quarter of an hour. A truly unforgettable film - a brilliantly filmed spectacle of perhaps every possible human emotion that swallows you, chews you up, spits you out, and lets you go about your business.
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