Directed by Andy Crane, co-directed and written by leading actor Nathan Shepka, nightclub bouncer Alex is tasked with tracking down a young girl snared by a sex trafficking network. Also starring: Grace Cordell, Manjot Sumal, Kareem Nasif, Sylvester McCoy, Patrick Bergin, Kyle McGuinness, John Walker Gray, Laura Hardie, Sean Munro, Wam Siluka Jr. and Farah Ahmed.
Creating a truly strong piece of British independent cinema within the crime-thriller genre is not an easy thing to do and it feels as though Andy Crane and Nathan Shepka set themselves too difficult of a challenge. Diving into the world of sex trafficking is not something to be done lightly, it requires a particularly deft hand to portray it sensitively while also creating a vehicle for entertainment, and that’s sadly something Dead Before They Wake misses the mark with.
You can clearly see the best of intentions that Shepka had to create his character of Alex, who is sympathetic and compassionate to lead this story of vigilante heroics, and he succeeds but it isn’t quite enough to drive the film. The foundation of Dead Before They Wake is playing to a familiar tune, a lone wolf with a soft side who is willing to risk his life to help others, it’s solid but the further in we get, the more things struggle.
There’s an over-thinking quality to the dialogue, it’s missing that organic feel and flow. Unfortunately, the progression and tone also feel heavy-handed, there’s too much time spent creating the grim and repulsive crux of the plot, not enough time doling out justice. Whereas Shepka’s previous film Lock & Load embraced the over-the-top nature of action, keeping things relatively light, Dead Before They Wake attempts to create something exceptionally dark, which is much more difficult.
The struggle to find the right balance is something that’s exemplified by its use of sex scenes, they lack a subtle hand and don’t add enough to justify them. Another part of that is the attempt to build a romantic vein but it doesn’t feel organic. It feels more akin to how The Mechanic uses Jason Statham’s character’s relationship with a sex worker to make him seem relatable and sympathetic.
It can work but it’s limited, whereas the moments between Alex and his father are touching and down to earth, so it’s a shame there aren’t other scenes like that to build the leading man’s personality and background, giving the audience more to invest in. Another good example of where the film tries to head in the right direction is Nathan Shepka’s scene with Wam Siluka Jr.. It gets to grips with the thriller side, doesn’t take itself too seriously and lets Alex get a little creative. The violence is something that certainly works with Dead Before They Wake but the mix between criminal and vengeance isn’t on the money.
Although, the direction is an element which is consistent throughout. It’s solid work, the clarity of the aesthetic is great, there’s a good variety to the shots. It’s not spending too much time in close but adding enough to try to build a personal vein to the story. The thriller elements are brought through well, to add in a higher tension and the choreography is decent. The effects and sound work to go along with its violent moments aren’t as strong but thankfully, don’t fall short enough to become a distraction.
Nathan Shepka’s performance is another aspect that’s a constant, there may be some questionable choices by his character but the portrayal is strong. The empathetic qualities are there, there’s the beginnings of trying to open his perspective to women and trauma which is good but it feels as though it needed a woman’s input to solve a few of the contradictory choices. Although again, that’s more of a writing issue, while the performance does a good job of mixing the brutal with the kind.
Dead Before They Wake needed to pick a clear lane, to either go all in on the vigilante justice and violence or dig deep into the dramatic and highlight the risks and harsh, relevant reality of sex trafficking. Unfortunately, it found itself somewhere in between and the balance doesn’t work. The writing struggles to capture the weight of the topics at hand and create a strong flow to the story, while the film’s trying so hard to tap into a grime and grittiness that it’s undermining itself by forgetting to give enough focus to the leading character and his vengeful side.
FilmCarnage.com 