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28 reviews in total

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28 out of 36 people found the following review useful:
Duel meets Wolf Creek, 19 March 2009

Author: sanjaywrightus from United Kingdom

Having been one of the lucky ones to have spent considerable time on UK motorways at night (and specifically the M1) I was immediately intrigued by the locale for this debut horror from Mark Tonderai. For me the originality of setting alone sets this horror apart from the countless tired horror locations: the haunted house, the woods, the abandoned hospital, etc, etc.

Overall the film is a fairly nuts-and-bolts by-the-numbers horror, which deserves credit for the originality of locale, decent performances, slick direction, with a few genuinely tense set-pieces (particularly the final showdown set-piece, which stands clearly above the rest). However, it is fairly unambitious with character detail (after the opening argument), and there are a few of the usual (and easily avoidable) horror clichés - we even get the hiding in the toilet cubicle sequence (albeit with a slight variation).

You get the sense that Tonderai had his set-up and finale worked out fairly early on but didn't know what to do with the story in between. The central third, while featuring a few decent scenes with the police, takes a couple of left turns into co-conspirator territory, alluding to a networked operation. The scenes with the security guards and the 'escaped' girl feel like they were put in to fill time and up the body count rather than deepen the story as a whole. Personally I felt that a more stripped-down lone bad-guy approach would have been strong enough.

The film owes something to Spielberg's 'Duel' in theme and narrative drive (no pun intended), and there are similarities in tone to the marginally superior Australian horror 'Wolf Creek'

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18 out of 25 people found the following review useful:
Motorways are a nightmare..., 16 October 2008

Author: BaffleCat from United Kingdom

Persusasive effort from first time writer/director Mark Tonderai. An everyman and his everygirlfriend argue as they drive down the motorway, and by a cruel twist of fate (or bad driving?) they end up experiencing a nightmare worse than any tiff. Although it stuck to genre rules closely and didn't try to put a new twist on the cat-and-mouse thriller, this was a carefully crafted film with suspense pulsing through every frame. Made by Warp Films, who were behind This Is England and this year's Donkey Punch, it is a great example of a tightly-plotted low-budget thriller. Although it may not break the thriller mold, it twists and surprises and unexpected threads of the story are brought together cleverly. This is perhaps more novel these days than the 'unexpected twist at the end' format that M Night Shyamalan and co feel obligatory. That said, there was a small "after the credits" moment where - I won't give it away - but there is an unexpected double ending. I wasn't sure how necessary it was, but if anything it was a nod to earlier 1970s films or even 1950s Hitchcock thrillers. In its structure and use of suspense, the film definitely harked back to Hitchcock but in the look and feel the hand-held cinematography and fast editing was clearly intended to remind us that we were in the here and now, and this was an adventure that could happen to any ordinary unlucky couple.

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7 out of 8 people found the following review useful:
enjoyable thriller, 1 September 2010

Author: english_artist from United Kingdom

I watched this not expecting much, and yeah some of the acting was a bit dubious but overall I was very impressed. When I started watching it I sat there with my finger on the stop button, but that button was never pressed as I was truly hooked. I really felt for the lead character and thought he played the part well. I was also surprised by a few twists here and there which would give Hollywood a run for its money.

For a movie that was obviously on a budget (made with help from the lottery) I think it can stand proud with the multi-million pound big boys from the USA.

A good thriller worth watching

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5 out of 5 people found the following review useful:
Not a bad way to spend a rainy afternoon, 25 October 2010

Author: johncfc28 from United Kingdom

I find it amazing how people get very critical about films which in some cases weren't advertised as big block busters. OK this isn't going to win any Oscars but hey its wasn't as bad as some people think. I do find these films frustrating sometimes when you dissect them and say well i wouldn't have done that but hey if that is the case then tell all those idiots who still swam with Jaws and still go to holiday camps. It had suspense and some good moments, i thought it was better than i was lead to believe and wouldn't recommend it but if you do hire it then you wont be too disappointed and just enjoy it for what it is a low budget film with some good moments.

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8 out of 11 people found the following review useful:
Brooding British Thriller!, 16 August 2009

Author: Tom Erik Høiås from Norway

better than expected British thriller about a mad man in a truck abducting girls. Zakes Abbot discovers this one night when he drive behind the Psycho's truck. is it better to leave it be? or get involved? hell soon find out the consequences of his decision. the last 20 minutes of the film , i found myself yelling at the screen saying "be quiet", "stupid woman" and "moronic dog". decent acting by the lead and superbly directing for first timer Mark Tonderai. the film could have easily be 30 minutes longer, especially since there was a few questions i wanted answered. the lack of these answers is the only reason i gave "Hush" a 7 in stead of an 8.

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8 out of 11 people found the following review useful:
Not too bad for his first feature, 24 October 2008

Author: c_fraquelli from United States

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

I saw this in London, UK at the closing night of the Raindance Film Festival. Granted, there were a couple of things that were a little strange. Most notably, the lasers at the end?

However, not bad for his first feature film, proudly sponsored by lottery money - the guy made it for 1 million GBP (british pounds) and did really well with the threat.

Unlike some other horror films, such as Wolf Creek, where they could have easily avoided the guy and run away several times or killed him instead of getting killed, Hush really is tough because he is on the highway, constantly pursuing this killer that he can't even see.

The film quality is obviously lower than usual films, but it simply adds to the grittiness of Northern UK. I was pretty pleased with the main guy's acting as well from an unknown with a heavy Northern accent. I mean, if it wasn't for his unwavering intensity and acting ability, the film would have been crap. The actor had to fully hold up the story on his acting and intensity alone in many scenes.

Well done and looking forward to more stuff from you on the UK scene!

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4 out of 4 people found the following review useful:
Mayhem on the M1, 24 October 2010

Author: John Seal from Oakland CA

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

The British social phenomenon known as "white van man" - usually a middle-aged Caucasian with a clean-shaven head and a white van he uses to deliver goods and services around the country - gets the cinematic treatment in this decent thriller from writer-director Mark Tonderai. William Ash and Christine Bottomley play Zakes and Beth, a young couple who, whilst driving along Britain's main arterial road, the M1, espy a woman apparently being held against her will in the back of a truck. After stopping at a rest station to gather their thoughts, Beth is, in turn, snatched by the mysterious trucker. Will Zakes put on his man-pants and rescue her? Filmed on location in Yorkshire, this British blend of Duel and The Vanishing (with a tiny bit of Blow-Up for good measure) is a pretty decent effort, especially considering it's Tonderai's first feature film.

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3 out of 3 people found the following review useful:
You are Zakes, 10 October 2010

Author: David James Bendle from England

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Zakes is just an average guy surviving on a average job when something happens, like many of us he is willing to tell someone and attempt to do something, but after the pass of responsibility is given to someone else he believes it's not his problem any more.

This film shows how small things we do to people, like letting someone's tyres down because of a reason such as supporting another team it can have drastic affects in the long run.

Zakes has lost his girlfriend in more ways than one, and the white truck becomes more of his problem than it did before, not once does he state he is trying to save the other girl he saw just his girlfriend, he's not trying to be a hero he's just doing what someone would actually do.

Some area's of the film could be criticized such as the car running out of fuel, but we all know how quick fuel runs out when we're on the motorway and when the car stutters and starts to slow, old car's like that do struggle to keep up pace. If anything the fact it didn't breakdown is more unrealistic. I've heard the battery dying was another cliché but the girl who is on it removes the battery so he can't ring anyone, as she puts it back in later on to ring the man.

The camera only ever leaves Zakes when it goes to his girlfriend when Zakes is doing his posters other than that your constantly with him, or being flicked to the security guys for a brief insight into how his girlfriend went missing. This constant sticking with Zakes is essential to keeping the fear factor, such as when he has to hide in the truck the camera is on Zakes, and you can only hear the footsteps, you do not know if the door is going to open or not. The fact Zakes 'talks' to himself and swears is a key part, as in so many films of this type they do not swear or say anything, the fear in his voice and eyes is apparent and William Ash does a brilliant job in bringing you into his feelings, of being terrified of something your chasing.

Zakes goes through a hard time in this, especially after he finds out his girlfriend has cheated on him he still wants to save her. Showing love is a powerful factor and everything isn't over when the worst happens.

Overall this film is easily under-rated, how it slipped under the radar compared to other over-hyped garbage we constantly see is unknown, but this film, given the right advertisements would have easily been a well worth profit maker. The ending wasn't great we're the credits stopped while it went back to the security dude, but how do you end an amazing film like that.

Easily worth the watch, brings emotion and feeling into you and would be a good film to watch with a partner.

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8 out of 13 people found the following review useful:
Cliché-ridden trash, 18 September 2009
Author: non-shill

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

The only reason I give this movie a 4 is that it's not out-and-out boring. That's about all the good I can say about it.

I found it difficult to understand the actors at times, with that awful accent. Good thing I had subtitles.

The film is full of clichés. Miles of them. The antagonist is a big, silent, well-muscled and scary guy. He likes wearing hoods--all the time. Talking, not so much. And he walks verrrrrrrrry slowly, even when following someone. Go figure. Cars will be disabled at the worst possible time. The protagonist makes one annoying and stupid decision after another.

The plot is a joke. There are more loopholes and loose ends than I care to recollect. What was the involvement of the security guard? Why was that one girl helping the psycho? Why are the girls being abducted in the first place? What's going on here? At the end, we never find out. There's no sense of closure or completion, no rhyme or reason. Just a dead hood-wearing scary guy.

And that's why this movie sucks.

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12 out of 21 people found the following review useful:
An interesting but irksomely forgettable mash of thrill with nil., 12 July 2009

Author: Jamie Ward from United Kingdom

Hush, which comes from ex British radio DJ Mark Tonderai (who has also done some small time writing and acting gigs in the past) is an example of the kind of film that excels in areas whilst disappointing and aggravating in others. Taking on the project as both writer and director, Tonderai succumbs to too many short-cut decisions during both tasks which results in an uneven, sometimes overly derivative and cumbersome picture, but also one that is very good at playing to its strengths. The resulting experience when watching Hush then is one of subtle engagement—there are times when you'll be annoyed at decisions made by characters fictional and non, yet this too often works in favour of the film. When taken as a simple thriller, Tonderai's directorial debut succeeds; it may not be the biggest most progressive outing for the genre but it's still got a certain conviction that allows it to hurtle on regardless; careless and somewhat bold.

The same can equally be said for the movie's protagonist who comes in the form of young adult Zakes Abbot (William Ash); an obnoxious, moaning git, basically. Doing his rounds along the M1 with his disgruntled girlfriend as he posts posters on service station bathrooms for some cash while he "works on his book", Zakes inevitably winds up on the wrong side of the road after he stumbles across a truck with a hostage in the back. After having a fight with girlfriend Beth (Christine Bottomley), both eventually go in separate direction whereupon Beth, predictably, goes bye-bye when the same truck stops in for a breather. From here on in, Zakes does the movie a large portion of justice by limiting his vocal contributions to mere screams as he strives to find his girlfriend and stop the maniac who has taken her captive.

Sound familiar? Well, yes, because it is. Countless movies deal with the same basic premise—some which work, some which don't. For all intents and purposes, Hush's story doesn't really work, unfortunately, but that doesn't exactly kill the feature. To director Tonderai's credit, the amount of suspense that is delivered over the course of the movie's ninety minute runtime is palpable. Particularly impressive as a result is the movie's final act which essentially acts as one extremely long sequence of chase between Zakes and his girlfriend's captor. There are some clever devices here and there that do help flesh the whole thing out, yet the basic enjoyment factor here is that pulse-pounding threat that Tonderai builds and builds throughout; it can be exciting, and therein lies one of only two highlights to Hush's palette.

The other highlight lies in the performance of William Ash who—although a little dubious when delivering some lines at the beginning of the feature—sells his fear amicably. For a movie such as this where the viewer's only real link into the psyche of this horror of sorts is through the central character that it's all happening against, Ash does a nice job of keeping that boat alive and breathing above water. This, in tow with Philipp Blaubach and Theo Green's contributions in the form of photography and music respectfully ensures that Hush is punctuated by a realist tone throughout which works well to its advantage.

Despite these areas where Tonderai manages to squeeze moments of suspense and engagement out of his otherwise tepid script however, Hush can be a flat and banal experience—most prominently during the movie's first act. Built upon a mountain of derivative clichés, ridiculous plot twists and dead-end sequences that go nowhere, the narrative that exists to propel the character of Zakes is unfocused and a little short on fresh ideas to the point where the guy's name is the only real original element inherent to it's existence. To this end, Hush irrevocably wastes the above strengths on such short-sighted laziness. Not only is it disappointing, but it's frustrating too. Somewhere within the murky excess of Tonderai's script lies a genuinely seamless experience where suspense is king and plot moves, but not erratically and without clear direction. Unfortunately however, such a movie never quite surfaces and instead, Hush concedes to being an interesting but irksomely forgettable mash of thrill with nil.

- A review by Jamie Robert Ward (http://www.invocus.net)

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