Synopsis: Cowen Rosewell lives with a small group of old friends in a scruffy flat in a small English town. Like many teens leaving school in 2014, there are few prospects or opportunities for people like Cowen and he has enrolled on a BTEC media course as a way of passing the time. His first assignment is to record everything in a week of his life.
At first Cowen dismisses the random acts of violence he witnesses as the business as usual in a small English town. However, when one of his best friends is savagely attacked by a stranger, and in defending her they kill her assailant, the inexplicably serious nature of the dead assailant’s injuries alert them to a more disturbing reality.
As events escalate, Cowen and his friends discover that the town has come under a mysterious malign influence which is somehow controlling organised gangs who are rounding people up and taking them to a nearby factory. The friends hide, hoping to escape, but their sanctuary is discovered and over run. Finally Cowen must make his way alone to the factory in search of his loved ones. The evil force that awaits him there has implications not just for Cowen, but for the entire world.
Review: There’s nothing new in the narrative or the filming techniques. What the film has is heart. It was originally supposed to be a web series, but writer/director/actor Drew Casson edited it into a feature.
He and his largely amateur cast and crew improvised the script in rehearsals and filmed over nine days on location in the south west of England. With that in mind, the script, visual effects and make-up for this Blair Witch style coming of age alien invasion tale are top notch.
I give Hungerford five out of five. I highly recommend this film to anyone who wants to study and admire spinning a yarn on a shoe-string. It is also worth seeing because it went down really well with crowds at this years Sci-Fi London event.
Cast:
Drew Casson as Cowen Rosewell
Georgia Bradley as Philipa Martell
Sam Carter as Kipper
Tom Scarlett as Adam Martell
Nigel Morgan as Terry
Colin Stark as Janine’s Dad
Kitty Speed as Janine
Website: www.hungerfordfilm.com
Score: 5/5
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