It is often said that it is hard getting a film made in this country. The exceptions being a prestigious costume drama, a work by an established auteur such as Mike Leigh or Ken Loach, or in recent years by a successful TV comedian. That is certainly true but I think that the bigger problem is getting the film distributed, shown, and seen. I saw Keeping Rosy at its only showing where I live one weekday morning at a well attended performance. It is the most recent of a number of decent to good mostly low budget British films that have barely been released outside of a few venues in London. I will cover some of the others at the end of this review.

Keeping Rosy stars Maxine Peake as Charlotte, a career driven single woman in London who suddenly gets made redundant when her company merges. Returning home, upset and angry, she gets into an argument with her cleaning lady. When the rows escalates, Charlotte hits her and accidently causes a fatal head injury. As this is a film, she decides to dispose of the body rather than call the police. It is only when she tries to do the same with the cleaner’s car which she left in the basement car park of Charlotte’s tower block that she discovers a surprise which propels the rest of the film.

As with all films of this type you have to get past the protagonists making illogical or ridiculous decisions in order to service the plot. If you can do that, and put up with some uneven characterisation – Charlotte switches from cold blooded and calculating to a wreck and back again very quickly – you should enjoy this neat little thriller. It has 2 unexpected and effective plot twists, and, as you would expect, Peake is very good in the main role. Christine Bottomley also provides a sparky performance as Charlotte’s sister, Sarah.

Rating 6.5 out of 10

Now for some other British films from the last couple of years. All of these can be obtained on DVD and some are doing the rounds on Sky Movies:

Cockneys v Zombies (2012 / Director: Matthias Hoene)
Probably the best known on this list because of its amusing title. A fun horror comedy featuring a super performance by Alan Ford and a memorable chase sequence involving a slow moving zombie and the late great Richard Briers using a zimmer frame.
Rating: 6 out of 10

Storage 24 (2012 / Johannes Roberts)
Writer Noel Clarke seems to have few problems getting films made and this is his best effort. A science fiction / action movie about a group of people trapped in a storage facility with an alien. Nothing original but pretty well done and a nice antidote to the big budget sci fi spectaculars we regularly see.
Rating: 6 out of 10

The Decoy Bride (2011 / Sheree Folkson)
Made little impression despite its high profile cast which includes David Tennent, Dylan Moran, Kelly MacDonald and Sally Phillps, this rom com sunk without a trace. Formulaic but at least as good as the more high profile Hollywood equivalents.
Rating: 6 out of 10

Twenty8K (2012 / David Kew and Neil Thompson)
Much maligned but I liked this twisty thriller about a woman trying to clear her brother of murder. Parmindar Nagra of Bend it Like Beckham fame impresses in a very different role.

Inbred (2011 / Alex Chandon)
A low budget horror involving some troubled teens on a trip to the Yorkshire moors. Some genuine scares, and surprisingly good performances all round, especially by Nadine Rose Mulkerrin as the introverted Sam.
Rating: 7 out of 10

Closed Circuit (2013 / John Crowley)
With a starry cast including Eric Bana, Emily Blunt and Jim Broadbent and its trailer on heavy rotation this one looked set for a wider release but instead disappeared. Although if feels heavily cut it is still a good political conspiracy thriller.
Rating: 7 out of 10

The Last Passenger (2013 / Omid Nooshin)
Cleverly using its budget limitations to its advantage, Dougray Scott is very good as a passenger trying to stop an out of control late night train. Only some clunky dialogue at the start and some ropey effects at the end stop this being a mini classic.
Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Tower Block (2012 / James Nunn and Ronnie Thompson)
The pick of this bunch. A group of residents of a tower block try to survive as a sniper attempts to pick them off. Tensions is nicely built up and the action sequences convince. The talented and versatile Sheridan Smith is excellent as a resourceful resident.
Rating 8 out of 10