Comics Bulletin logo
Search
  • Columns
    Random
    • Random Notes from the Edge

      Paul Brian McCoy
      February 20, 2008
      Meth Addict
    Recent
    • Revisiting the Witchblade/Fathom/Tomb Raider Crossover

      Daniel Gehen
      February 8, 2021
    • The Full Run: Usagi Yojimbo – The Wanderer’s Road Part 2

      Daniel Gehen
      December 4, 2020
    • The Full Run: Usagi Yojimbo – The Wanderer’s Road Part 1

      Daniel Gehen
      October 30, 2020
    • What Looks Good
    • Comics Bulletin Soapbox
    • The Full Run
    • Leading Question
    • Top 10
    • The Long-Form
    • Jumping On
    • Comics in Color
    • Slouches Towards Comics
  • Big Two
    Random
    • Arguing in Bad Faith: The Online Debacle Surrounding Hydra Cap

      Paul Brian McCoy
      June 30, 2016
      Big Two, Miscellaneous Comic Book Content
    Recent
    • 3.0

      Review: X-MEN LEGENDS #1 Delivers A Dose of Nostalgia

      Daniel Gehen
      February 22, 2021
    • 4.5

      DCeased: Dead Planet #7 Presents a Hopeful Future (Review)

      Daniel Gehen
      January 22, 2021
    • Retro Review: Detective Comics #826 Remains a Holiday Classic

      Daniel Gehen
      December 3, 2020
    • DC Comics
    • Big Two Reviews
    • Marvel Comics
  • Indie
    Random
    • Collecting Profile: Bloodshot (Valiant)

      Paul Brian McCoy
      August 24, 2019
      Collecting Profile, Columns, Valiant
    Recent
    • 4.5

      Review: THE LAST RONIN #2 Hurts So Good

      Daniel Gehen
      February 19, 2021
    • TIME BEFORE TIME—A HIGH STAKES TIME TRAVEL SCIENCE FICTION SERIES SET TO LAUNCH THIS MAY

      Daniel Gehen
      February 19, 2021
    • Image Comics and TMP Announces SPAWN’S UNIVERSE

      Daniel Gehen
      February 18, 2021
    • Reviews
    • Archie Comics
    • Boom! Studios
    • Dark Horse
    • IDW
    • Image
    • Oni Press
    • Valiant
  • Reviews
    Random
    • 1.0

      Review: Superman Earth One Vol. 2

      Paul Brian McCoy
      November 8, 2012
      Reviews
    Recent
    • 3.0

      Review: X-MEN LEGENDS #1 Delivers A Dose of Nostalgia

      Daniel Gehen
      February 22, 2021
    • 4.5

      Review: THE LAST RONIN #2 Hurts So Good

      Daniel Gehen
      February 19, 2021
    • 2.3

      Review: SAVAGE #1 Needs Taming

      Daniel Gehen
      February 16, 2021
    • Singles Going Steady
    • Slugfest
    • Manga
      • Reviews
    • Small Press
      • Reviews
      • ICYMI
      • Tiny Pages Made of Ashes
  • Interviews
    Random
    • Matz: Exploring the Mind of a Killer

      Paul Brian McCoy
      April 7, 2010
      Interviews
    Recent
    • Interview: Jon Davis-Hunt Talks SHADOWMAN

      Daniel Gehen
      June 8, 2020
    • Interview: Becky Cloonan talks DARK AGNES and Her Personal Influences

      Mike Nickells
      March 4, 2020
    • Simon Roy

      Interview: Simon Roy on His Inspirations and Collaborations on PROTECTOR

      Mike Nickells
      January 29, 2020
    • Audio Interview
    • Video Interview
  • Classic Comics
    Random
    • Frank Miller's Ronin: "If You Intend to Die, You Can Do Anything."

      Paul Brian McCoy
      July 1, 2016
      Classic Comics, Classic Comics Cavalcade
    Recent
    • Countdown to the King: Marvel’s Godzilla

      Daniel Gehen
      May 29, 2019
    • Honoring A Legend: Fantagraphics To Resurrect Tomi Ungerer Classics

      Daniel Gehen
      February 15, 2019
    • Reliving the Craziest Decade in Comics History: An interview with Jason Sacks

      Mark Stack
      January 2, 2019
    • Classic Comics Cavalcade
    • Classic Interviews
  • News
    Random
    • This Week in Dark Horse: Oh the Horror!

      Paul Brian McCoy
      September 8, 2015
      Dark Horse, Indie, News, This Week in Dark Horse
    Recent
    • TIME BEFORE TIME—A HIGH STAKES TIME TRAVEL SCIENCE FICTION SERIES SET TO LAUNCH THIS MAY

      Daniel Gehen
      February 19, 2021
    • Image Comics and TMP Announces SPAWN’S UNIVERSE

      Daniel Gehen
      February 18, 2021
    • SAVAGE DRAGON IS A FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH THIS MAY

      Daniel Gehen
      February 17, 2021
    • Press Release
    • Kickstarter Spotlight
  • Books
    Random
    • Bernie Wrightson's 'Creepshow' is Back and Scarier Than Ever

      Paul Brian McCoy
      May 16, 2017
      Books, Classic Comics Cavalcade, Reviews
    Recent
    • Collecting Profile: Disney Frozen

      CB Staff
      November 22, 2019
    • Collecting Profile: NFL Superpro

      CB Staff
      August 31, 2019
    • “THE BEST OF WITZEND” is a Wonderful Celebration of Artistic Freedom

      Daniel Gehen
      September 15, 2018
    • Review: ‘Machete Squad’ is a Disappointing Afghan Memoir

      Jason Sacks
      July 31, 2018
    • Review: ‘Out of Nothing’ is the Antidote to Our Sick Times

      Jason Sacks
      July 23, 2018
    • Review: ‘Bizarre Romance’ Shows Rough Edges in the Early Days of a New Marriage

      Jason Sacks
      July 10, 2018
What's New
  • Collecting Profile: Blue Beetle
  • Review: X-MEN LEGENDS #1 Delivers A Dose of Nostalgia
  • Collecting Profile: Kraven the Hunter
  • Review: THE LAST RONIN #2 Hurts So Good
  • TIME BEFORE TIME—A HIGH STAKES TIME TRAVEL SCIENCE FICTION SERIES SET TO LAUNCH THIS MAY
  • Image Comics and TMP Announces SPAWN'S UNIVERSE
  • RSS Feed
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Contact Us
  • Write for us!
  • Visit Video Game Break!
Home
Reviews

31 Days of Halloween: Day 24 – A Field in England

Paul Brian McCoy
October 24, 2013
Reviews
31 Days of Halloween: Day 24 – A Field in England
4.5Overall Score
Reader Rating: (0 Votes)

This Schlocktober, Comics Bulletin will be exploring the world of horror cinema, featuring thirty one notable films released between Halloween 2012 and Halloween 2013. Next up is director/co-writer Ben Wheatley‘s A Field in England.

Following up on his ABCs of Death installment and Sightseers, Ben Wheatley takes us back in time to the English Civil War with the psychedelic horror of A Field in England. The film is a master class in low-budget film making as it was shot for barely the cost of a half-hour television show (£300,000), has a very small cast, and takes place almost entirely in a single setting — the titular field in England.

Every performer does impressive work, but the dynamic is simply electric between Reece Shearsmith as an alchemist’s assistant named Whitehead and Michael Smiley as O’Neill, the man who stole the alchemist’s papers and has set out to, um, do something. Find a treasure, maybe. But that could just be a story he tells, because by that time in the story, everybody’s tripping on mushrooms and things get very scary and very weird.

If you don’t know, Shearsmith is one of the demented minds responsible for The League of Gentlemen, Psychoville, and starred in the criminally underrated horror film, The Cottage (2008). Seriously, go check out all of those if you haven’t. And if you’ve read any of my reviews of things UK, you’ll know that Michael Smiley is one of my favorite working actors, having brightened everything from Spaced to Utopia to Black Mirror to Ben Wheatley’s previous films Down Terrace, Kill List, and “U is for Unearthed” in ABCs of Death.

This is the sort of film that was made for Midnight Movie watching, echoing classic mindfucks like Eraserhead (1977) or El Topo (1970) while also staying true to the tradition of UK folk horror like Witchfinder General (1968), The Blood on Satan’s Claw (1971), or the 1977 British TV mini-series Children of the Stones. And again, yes, you should go watch all of these as soon as possible, too.

I’m not really going to say a lot about this film, because it doesn’t really explain much of anything to the viewer, and I don’t want to spoil anything about this one. The plot is relatively simple, but what actually happens is complex as hell. And when all is said and done, nothing you think is real may actually be real. Or worse, it’s all real. The hallucinogenic adventure that these characters are on isn’t just something happening to them; the film’s narrative itself slowly adopts a hallucinogenic style, with long silences, slow-motion sequences, mind-bending fast-cut psychedelic imagery and then suddenly the medium becomes the message.

Watch it. Then watch it again. Then, why not? Watch it again.

Then when you talk about it to someone else who’s seen it, you still won’t be able to agree about what actually happened. It’s accomplished in a way similar to what was tried with Berberian Sound Studio, however A Field in England doesn’t fall short. And that, my friends, is its own special kind of genius.


Paul Brian McCoy is the writer of Mondo Marvel and a regular contributor/editor for Comics Bulletin. His first novel, The Unraveling: Damaged Inc. Book One is available at Amazon US & UK, along with his collection of short stories, Coffee, Sex, & Creation (US & UK). He recently contributed the 1989 chapter to The American Comic Book Chronicles: The 1980s (US & UK) and has kicked off Comics Bulletin Books with Mondo Marvel Volumes One (US & UK) and Two (US & UK). Paul is unnaturally preoccupied with zombie films, Asian cult cinema, and sci-fi television. He can also be found babbling on Twitter at @PBMcCoy.

 

Paul Brian McCoy

Share On:
Tweet
Review: 'Pompeii' by Frank Santoro is about romance, love, infidelity and so very much more
The Vampire Diaries 5.03 “Original Sin” Review

About The Author

Paul Brian McCoy
Paul Brian McCoy

Paul Brian McCoy is the Editor-in-Chief of Psycho Drive-In, writer of Mondo Marvel, and a regular contributor/editor for Comics Bulletin. His first novel, The Unraveling: Damaged Inc. Book One is available at Amazon US & UK, along with his collection of short stories, Coffee, Sex, & Creation (US & UK). He recently contributed the 1989 chapter to The American Comic Book Chronicles: The 1980s (US & UK) and has kicked off Comics Bulletin Books with Mondo Marvel Volumes One (US & UK) and Two (US & UK). Paul is unnaturally preoccupied with zombie films, Asian cult cinema, and sci-fi television. He can also be found babbling on Twitter at @PBMcCoy.

Related Posts

  • “The Long, Strange Trip of Deathlok the Demolisher”

    Paul Brian McCoy
    May 22, 2017
  • 3.8

    Review: ‘Agent Carter’ 1.01 “Pilot” & 1.02 “Bridge And Tunnel”

    Paul Brian McCoy
    January 8, 2015

Latest Reviews

  • 3.0

    Review: X-MEN LEGENDS #1 Delivers A Dose of Nostalgia

    Daniel Gehen
    February 22, 2021
  • 4.5

    Review: THE LAST RONIN #2 Hurts So Good

    Daniel Gehen
    February 19, 2021
  • 2.3

    Review: SAVAGE #1 Needs Taming

    Daniel Gehen
    February 16, 2021
  • 4.3

    Review: RADIANT BLACK #1 Shines Brightly

    Daniel Gehen
    February 12, 2021
  • 2.7

    Review: DEEP BEYOND #1 Can’t Commit to a Premise

    Daniel Gehen
    February 4, 2021
  • 2.0

    VINDICATION Falls Short of its Lofty Goals (Review)

    Daniel Gehen
    February 1, 2021
  • 4.5

    DCeased: Dead Planet #7 Presents a Hopeful Future (Review)

    Daniel Gehen
    January 22, 2021
  • Review: The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Cartoonist

    Daniel Gehen
    December 14, 2020
  • Retro Review: Detective Comics #826 Remains a Holiday Classic

    Daniel Gehen
    December 3, 2020
  • 4.5

    TMNT: The Last Ronin #1 Lives Up to the Hype (Review)

    Daniel Gehen
    October 29, 2020
RSSTwitterFacebookgoogleplusinstagramtumblr

Comics Bulletin is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for website owners to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, audible.com, and any other website that may be affiliated with Amazon Service LLC Associates Program. As an Amazon Associate, Comics Bulletin earns from qualifying purchases.

All content on this site (c) 2018 The Respective Copyright Holders