"Shallow Grave" (1994) Directed by Danny Boyle

“Tell them there’s a suitcase full of money, and you don’t want it!”.

So what could possibly drive a sane, intelligent and reasonable young man with a burgeoning career in chartered accountancy ahead of him to go and live in a loft and drill spy holes in the ceiling in the process? Maybe it’s that god damn telephone that won’t stop ringing? Or perhaps it’s the dead body and the suitcase full of money? Or has the exciting world of chartered accountancy finally driven the poor man over the edge? All is revealed in Danny Boyle’s first cinematic treat and twenty years on from it’s initial release it still remains a genuine treat that is still fresh and vibrant and if you’re not smiling broadly at the end when Andy Williams’ “Happy Heart” is playing to a conclusion, then you’ve clearly missed the point.

Written by John Hodge in what was to become the first of many such collaborations with Director Boyle and funded by both Film 4 International and the Glasgow Film Fund, it’s a simple tale of friendship, split loyalties and how a totally unforeseen episode can change and destroy these friendships forever. “Juliet Miller” (Kerry Fox) is a straight ahead, fun loving Doctor whose tangled love life nominally includes her flatmate “David Stephens” (Christopher Eccleston), the aforementioned chartered accountant. They share a flat with “Alex Law” (Ewan McGregor) a journalist who takes nothing, including himself, seriously. The three are firm friends as well as flatmates and this is established immediately after the end of the Killing Zoe inspired opening credits, as Juliet, David and Alex interview potential new flatmates for their spare bedroom in their spacious Edinburgh flat. All three are professional, educated and enjoy their young lives, with Juliet constantly avoiding her tangled love life, David’s irreverent and sarcastic behaviour belying his staid professional career, brilliantly exemplified when describing himself as the anti-Christ to a prospective new flatmate, and Alex is the constant joker of the three and never taking anything seriously. After interviewing and accepting “Hugo” (Keith Allen) as their new flatmate, their lives will be changed forever.

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The above opening paragraphs are taken from my original spoiler free review of "Shallow Grave" penned and published over a decade ago, transferred to my Medium blog site on 6th December 2022 and which can now be read in full and for free via my Substack blog site and my original and updated article linked immediately below:

https://ramblingmusings666.substack.com/p/shallow-grave-1994-ef8514e196c7

This spoiler free review is also integral to volume 5 of my 7 volumes of "essential film reviews collection". Currently only available via e-book, each volume of exhaustive and numerous film reviews are priced at £4.99 however should you have an Amazon Kindle "Unlimited" package you can read each and every volume for free:

Volume 5

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C4N25YCW

All 7 Volume Series

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C4HZSTTH?binding=kindle_edition&ref=dbs_dp_rwt_sb_pc_tukn

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