CASHBACK/SHOPPING DIFFERENTLY

Your local Tesco may be a little more lovable after this film. Certainly you are never likely to see more beautiful naked women in a supermarket outside your dreams.

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Indeed, even these girls are only here courtesy of a dream sequence. Or, perhaps, it is a novel out-of-body experience.

The thing is, charming Sean Biggerstaff is having a few problems with real life. Jilted by his girlfriend in a few startlingly funny open scenes, he suffers sleepless nights and decides to make use of the time by working shifts in his local food shop.<.p>

No prizes for guessing that he finds the employees are a very mixed bag of people (with him, main photo), which suits him fine.

In fact, when it comes to a mixed bag, he is himself a frontrunner since he starts to hallucinate or fantasise away the midnight hours, especially once he discovers a strange ability to stop time altogether.

At least to stop it for everyone else, allowing him to wander around admiring them and, in the case of the most beautiful women, undressing himself.

Lovingly shot by award winning short filmmaker Simon Ellis, it looks gorgeous and, if you enjoy static moments that tend to shatter the suspension of disbelief that is usually part of movie escapism, this might well be that quirky romantic comedy it wants to be.

Certainly it provides an admirable chance to watch 2005 versions of Emilia Fox, Michelle Ryan and Keeley Hazel evolving into the big names actors they have become.

The film’s arrival has been delayed by a ground breaking journey on the festival circuit, following in the footsteps of the highly successful short film that inspired.

Since the film is all about stopping time, this hiaitus has done nothing to damage the director’s singular visual style.

Posted May 5, 2008.