Starring: Kerry Fox, Christopher Eccleston, Ewan McGregor, Ken Stott, Keith Allen Directed By: Danny Boyle Average Rating: Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 Audience Rating: R (Restricted) Binding: DVD Format: Color, DVD, Full Screen, Letterboxed, Widescreen, NTSC Label: MGM (Video & DVD) Number of Items: 1 Region Code: 1 Release Date: March 28, 2000 Running Time: 93 minutes Theatrical Release Date: February 10, 1995
Description: Three friends push the boundaries of trust in this hermetically sealed shocker (Los Angeles Times) from the creators of Trainspotting. Starring Kerry Fox (The Hanging Garden), Christopher Eccleston (Elizabeth) and Ewan McGregor (Star Wars: The Phantom Menace), Shallow Grave is a masterpiece of terror (Movieline), riddled with hairpin turns (Boxoffice) that takes you on a fantastic ride to the lowest depths of human nature. 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 policeand two money-hungry thugsback 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!
Amazon.com: The first feature from director Danny Boyle, producer Andrew MacDonald, and screenwriter John Hodge (who went on to make the enormously popular Trainspotting, the not-so-well-received A Life Less Ordinary, and The Beach), Shallow Grave begins with three obnoxious roommates mockingly interrogating applicants who want to share their spacious flat. The guy they finally choose doesn't last long--they find him dead from a drug overdose along with a suitcase full of money that he no longer needs. They decide to keep the money; this of course requires that they discreetly dispose of the body, which proves to be a gruesome, traumatic business. They begin to suspect each other of betrayal and become increasingly deranged. The movie wants to be a satirical comment on the greed of British yuppies but is more an exercise in stylish paranoia, where the color of the walls matters more than why the characters behave the way they do. The clever cinematography and macabre humor make Shallow Grave worth watching, just don't expect to like anyone in it. Starring the very hip trio of Kerry Fox (An Angel at My Table, The Last Days of Chez Nous), Ewan McGregor (Trainspotting, Velvet Goldmine, Star Wars: Episode I--The Phantom Menace), and Christopher Eccleston (Jude, Elizabeth). --Bret Fetzer
Thriller Too Arty For It's Own Good "Shallow Grave" falls in the category of flicks that I admire but don't particularly like. Director Danny Boyle displays some artistic fluorishes here but you sense that he's still getting his feet wet. He seems to be riffing off of Hitchcock and he just barely escapes parody. Considering the film is barely over ninety minutes the story seems incredibly thin. Money is the root of all evil? We get it. The central characters are spoiled yuppies who at their core are psychotic greedhounds? Real original observation. Recommended for Boyle completists only.
Perfection By the end credits, you'll be smiling in disbelief. I guarantee it.
There is not a single off note or misstep about this colorful, offbeat, tight little thriller. It's laden with plenty of bite and dark humour, and the small cast (including the always great Chris Eccleston, and a boyish Ewan Mcgregor in his first starring role) is fabulous.
This is Danny Boyle's best film. Yes, it's better than both 'Slumdog Millionaire' and 'Trainspotting' combined, in my opinion. This film is what a great independent movie should be, and it just seems to gain in popularity as time goes by. Ask any film buff, and you will find that most responses will be similar to this review, all using common adjectives. Memorable. Smart. Sexy. Hilarious. Provocative. Shocking.
Brilliant.
One of the best storyline thrillers ever. First of all, let's just tell the review readers that the low ratings are obviously few and far between for a reason. Take stock in the fact that the majority of ratings are 5 stars.
I own this film on good old VHS tape. Long before Ewan McGregor was a household name. So please, throw away any idea that he makes or breaks this film. It's stunning. The story sucks you in and you are there, alone with just you and your television. It will be easy to block out the outside world and become mesmerized. And horrified and shocked and aghast and bewildered.
I promise this film is amazing. Be careful of reading too many reviews as they'll stupidly give away too much of the film.
Brilliant thriller, without the gore This is a brilliant movie that is similar to A Simple Plan, but much more entertaining. 3 friends who share a large apartment decide to rent one of their rooms. They make a game out of embarrassing every applicant until they take in a gangster. The gangster dies with a suitcase full of money left. They stash a dead gangster's body and hide the money. Meanwhile, two nasty gangsters are torturing people along their search for the suitcase of money. Which, adds pressure to the 3 prankster friends, who start getting on each other's nerves and distrust mounts. Some formally nice people turn hard, cunning and a bit crazy. Eventually, even murderous. The killing scenes are done suspenseful, but tasteful. The end totally threw me off, but it did make sense. Well worth watching. Full of British Humor and irony.
underrated and brilliant all across the board. little is necessary. this film was bashed critically upon release, but has aged well with the years, gaining not only a following, but the credit it deserves. the brilliant start to a brilliant director.
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