Wasteman (2025) Dir: Cal McMau

Instagram post:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DV3aAYKjVgJ/?igsh=MTk3NGRjOXp0a2s3YQ==

Cal McMau's independent prison drama struck me immediately for its cast, environment, and apparent story. It looked like a very visceral experience to watch, especially in the cinema, and that's exactly where I went to see it. There had been plenty of praise for the film, following its film festival debut, but, unfortunately, I had to wait for its theatrical run to go and see it for myself.

As I had hoped, this was an incredibly claustrophobic film, and very much by design. The set was utilised extremely cleverly in order to give a confined, suffocating feel, as well as to create some gorgeous and unique shots. A lot of the cinematography in the film really was quite beautiful, despite the grey, depressing landscape of its prison setting. The film also including a couple of slow zooms which were particularly good. I found the audiovisual experience of the film extremely intoxicating and effective. The soundtrack was incredible, and captured both the emotions and aesthetics of the film pretty much perfectly.

Every aspect of the film had personality, even the extras felt like real people. I loved the way the story blended reality with its fictional narrative. It was a deeply compelling and thought-provoking film, on many levels. It felt so personal and intimate, and went great lengths to envelop the audience within its suffocating world and increasingly tense narrative. I loved seeing how effectively the characters shaped the story, particularly towards the end of the film. I also, as a small note, loved how events in the film were foreshadowed along the way - it was subtle but very well done, in my opinion.

This was not only an intense pressure cooker of a film, as well as a fascinating and damning portrayal of the UK prison system in the modern age. It explored the perpetually understaffed, overcrowded, and underfunded nature of the prisons, as well as the lack of reform opportunities, the constant ferrying from prison to prison of inmates instead of being given the support they need, the rampant violence and contraband, the substandard care and protection for both staff and inmates, and, ultimately, how inmates become institutionalised because of a combination of the above issues. It was a powerful and emotional experience.

The first part I wrote of this review was for the performances of the two leading actors, because they were so good that I simply had to start there. I have a lot of time for David Jonsson, even at this very early stage of his feature film career, and this was further evidence to that persuasion. He is fast becoming one of the best young actors working today, particularly in regards to conveying vulnerability, an ability which favoured him greatly here. Jonsson's innate ability to produce an empathetic audience response allowed him to tell a deeply emotional and compelling story with his performance.

Tom Blyth, take a bow. This was one of the most effective, interesting, and genuinely star-making performances I've seen in a very long time. My only prior experience of his work was in the recent 'Hunger Games' prequel; a performance which hadn't impressed me too much, in all truth. By contrast, this one was immaculate in every way. You could feel the rage coursing through his character's veins, fueling his unpredictable and hair-trigger temperament. It would be so easy to overplay a role like this, but Blyth played it to near-perfection. The facial expressions he produced at points in this film were something special.

Overall, I thought this was an outstanding film, typified by a pair of stunning performances from the film's two leading men, as well as some extremely slick cinematography. It is, without a doubt, one of the best films from last year, and one that I'll be thinking about for a long time. I think it has gone extremely under the radar, and will therefore become an incredibly underrated and under-seen film. Either way, this is an excellent prison drama, and a remarkable example of what independent cinema can be.