Salvage

Stars: Neve McIntosh, Shaun Dooley, Linzey Cocker

Director: Lawrence Gough

This horror thriller is well made and the mechanics of fear skilfully worked. The actors, especially McIntosh as the besieged Beth, emote at full throttle. Unfortunately the plot is too ridiculous to compel our attention for more than a few seconds at a time.

In a quiet Liverpool cul-de-sac, teenage Jade (Cocker) arrives for a two-day stay with her mother (McIntosh), only to find mum in mid-sex with one-night stand Kieron (Dooley). Soon after, Jodie flees to the haven of a neighbour, who's unconvincingly unsympathetic to Beth's pleas for her return.

En route back to the house, Beth is grounded by an SAS man, part of a unit that is closing down the street. Turns out that a big container has been washed ashore nearby and something lethal has escaped from it.

It would be nice to praise this film more: the director obviously has talent and wastes no time in telling his story. But his scriptwriter has let him down. Almost nothing here makes any sense. Why do the SAS men go around killing civilians all the time? And if, as the end proves, the 'lethal presence' can be easily killed, haven't the corps of soldiers riddled it with bullets long before?

Dialogue hovers between gasp and giggle, but McIntosh, even lumbered with a ludicrous final scene, gives it her all and deserves the awards she's won for the role.

David Quinlan

UK 2008. UK Distributor: Revolver. Colour by Panalux.
76 minutes. Widescreen. UK certificate: 18.

Guidance ratings (out of 3): Sex/nudity 1, Violence/Horror 3, Drugs 0, Swearing 2.

Review date: 16 Mar 2010