Wasters review
Screened: 25th February 2010

After hearing the opening line” My little soldier is dead” I knew we were going to be in for an interesting night. Editor James Page had introduced the film to me as “don’t worry, there is just a bit of swearing in it”: the understatement of the year! Indeed, there were swearing and sexual references that even made me blush, but they were not used as loose cannons but as frame work for a touching narrative.
The story line is the coming of age of a group of young adults who are trying to give meaning to their seemingly superficial lives. The Thursday Flickers audience enjoyed the cinematic experience and wasn’t hindered by any generation gaps. It could have ended up as a claustrophobic and restraining situation, having the film set in just the interior of one Birmingham pub during one night. However, this is circumnavigated by snappy editing, classy acting and a very appropriate musical score. The fragile song during the climax of the film still gives me goose bumps.
I don’t think I could compare Wasters to anything I’ve seen before. This is a good thing, it was a unique and refreshing experience and I’m looking forward to seeing more from the likes of Luke Rufo and James Page.
During the Q&A session the crew made the public aware of the difficulties which Midlands based up and coming film makers face. The independent feature film Wasters was created without any significant budget, a fact you could easily forget because the lightning, framing and camera movement were of high quality, as professional as you can get. They also spoke about the intensive but enjoyable shooting process and that you can get people to do anything you want as long as you give them a free lunch!