Something of a rarity within a film industry that primarily produces kitchen sink drama and depressingly contemplative drama, New Town Killers takes Hollywoodian action and suspense and places it firmly in the heart of Scottish culture, Edinburgh in this case. It follows young Sean MacDonald (James Anthony Pearson), an unemployed tenement dweller struggling to get by with his house-sharing sister Alice (Liz White).
Things inevitably turn for the worst when it emerges that Alice owes £12,000 to a crime syndicate. No sooner has Sean discovered this than he receives a Faustian bargain from the mysterious Alistair (Dougray Scott). He wants to play a game; if Sean can run and hide from Alistair and his accomplice (Alistair McKenzie) for twelve hours that night, he will receive the money needed to pay off his debt. Unable to find an alternative source of funds, Sean reluctantly agrees...but soon discovers just dangerous the chase really is.
Though refreshing in terms of genre and style, genuinely suspenseful and tense for long periods, New Town Killers is a film which, within about half an hour, begins to raise eyebrows more than it does heart beats. While it clearly aims to deliver the same level of thrills as a mainstream blockbuster, or at the very least a respectable actioner, Jobson’s expert direction is overshadowed by the large gaps in logic within his script and story.
For every carefully executed, and impressively effective, set piece during the bounty hunt, there is a bizarre contrivance. While entertaining at face value, the film loses much of its credibility by never really caring enough about its own story. During much of its length, certain hints and nods seem to be being presented to us, suggesting a huge twist or a monumental event, which duly doesn’t show up, while the under-developed and frankly obnoxious antagonists seem to possess superhuman levels of smarts and complete control over their surround, traits which are never justified in-story.
Dougray Scott, hamming it up to high heaven with little more than an iota of his talent being worked, plays a character that would appear to a commando-like figure, but in fact is proved to just be a psychopathic banker. And worse still, he’s a psychopathic banker with no real motivation. The final denouement for his character, an un-reveal of sorts, attempts to be chilling and horrifying, but instead is anti-climactic and a cop out. Villains need to be interesting in their own right before they can be manipulated into carrying out illogical acts. The understanding that the ‘chaser’ has been doing this for a long time is utterly absurd in light of the fact that he has no particular skills or connections to avoid ever being caught or killed.
Similarly, the protagonist Sean’s indestructible body is a source of concerning distraction and perhaps even misdirection. On three different occasions, he leaps to the ground from a great height, and viewers expecting to hear the crack of his legs breaking are duly baffled when he gets up without even a flinch of pain. A severely agonizing injury picked up in the film’s climax is quickly forgotten about, and even when he does end up in hospital he sneaks out with no indication of hurting. The belief that such things can happen because this is fiction is entirely a fallacy, and a lazy way to get the character out of a tight situation when a little logical deduction would have reached a far more satisfactory, merited conclusion.
While ultimately hollow and based on a screenplay that badly needed some serious redrafting work, New Town Killers does at least boast some positives. As already mentioned, Jobson shows real flair and talent when it comes to racking up the tension, and there is taut, fast paced entertainment to be had from the hunt. He also uses his city well, with Edinburgh’s distinctly historical look well exploited and locations chosen well, creating a great backdrop to the story.
In the acting department, Control’s James Anthony Pearson is excellent as Sean, displaying genuine fear and emotion as the squeezed protagonist, although noticeable slips back into his native Rochdale accent can be distracting. Liz White, playing Sean’s sister Alice, and Charles Mnene as his friend Sam, are also exemplary, giving natural and convincing performances. Dougray Scott, as already mentioned, coasts through proceedings with natural cool and sinister glares but clearly, and sadly, doesn’t invest much in the material, while Alastair MacKenzie, as the villain’s colleague, seems to be giving a decent conflicted turn which is lost underneath a pointlessly put on English accent, making one wonder why a Scottish actor in a Scottish set film would play their character as English when there doesn’t seem to be any call for it within the story. At least Pearson has an excuse.
Where New Town Killers really hits a nerve, however, is that there is no reason why it can’t be any better than it is. An attempt to throw in some subtext about class snobbery and social divides is commendable, but also half baked, and has no bearing on anything other than referencing the fact that the antagonist is poor while the protagonist isn’t. Likewise, the film seems to be heading down an interesting avenue, then turns away and promptly peters out into disappointment. With a little more thought and investment, it could have been both highly watch-able AND intelligent. My listing of the film’s plus points that way wouldn’t be an attempt to offer a consolation prize.
However, unfortunately it isn’t better than it is, and what it is is an occasionally decent but ultimately wasteful and flat movie-going experience of wasted potential and little real re-watch value. Perhaps worth a look in, but one might just despair at the lack of sense on screen.
