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Saxon

  • 2007
  • 1h 32m
IMDb RATING
5.2/10
129
YOUR RATING
Saxon (2007)
ComedyDramaMysteryThrillerWestern

An ex-con returns to the corrupt housing estate where he grew up to investigate the disappearance of a quiz champion.An ex-con returns to the corrupt housing estate where he grew up to investigate the disappearance of a quiz champion.An ex-con returns to the corrupt housing estate where he grew up to investigate the disappearance of a quiz champion.

  • Director
    • Greg Loftin
  • Writer
    • Greg Loftin
  • Stars
    • Sean Harris
    • Tom Hopper
    • James Robinson
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.2/10
    129
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Greg Loftin
    • Writer
      • Greg Loftin
    • Stars
      • Sean Harris
      • Tom Hopper
      • James Robinson
    • 10User reviews
    • 16Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 2 wins & 1 nomination total

    Photos4

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    Top cast33

    Edit
    Sean Harris
    Sean Harris
    • Eddie
    Tom Hopper
    Tom Hopper
    • Fishmonger
    James Robinson
    James Robinson
    • Fishmonger
    James Stokes
    • Fishmonger
    Tony O'Leary
    • Salmon
    Ashley Sadanandan
    • Ali
    Divian Ladwa
    Divian Ladwa
    • Rahim
    Sarah Matravers
    Sarah Matravers
    • Linda
    Henry Kelly
    Henry Kelly
    • Nicko
    Michael Davidson
    • Contestant
    Kerry O'Halloran
    • Contestant
    Paul McNeilly
    • Kevin
    Leigh Woodward
    • Iris - Twin
    Jodie Woodward
    • Poppy - Twin
    Susan Scott
    Susan Scott
    • Lighterlady
    Maddie Loftin
    • Pepperspray Woman
    Luing Andrews
    Luing Andrews
    • Bailiff #1
    Patrick MacRodain
    • Bailiff #2
    • Director
      • Greg Loftin
    • Writer
      • Greg Loftin
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews10

    5.2129
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    Featured reviews

    9simonk92

    Fresh, Fun and Original Feature Debut!

    I had the good fortune of watching this film at a preview screening in London last week. I hadn't heard a lot about the film and neither had most people at the half full cinema. Well more fool the half of the audience who didn't turn up as this was without doubt one of the freshest and funniest feature films to emerge in ages.

    Right from the gripping opening sequence, Saxon grabs you by the scruff of the neck and pulls you along for an uproarious ninety minutes. It's difficult to classify the movie, part spaghetti western, part thriller, part dark comedy with a touch of redemption and dash of romance set in a run down estate called Saxon. To it's complete credit it never feels like a mish mash of ideas, in fact the complete opposite. It all works and combines seamlessly to introduce different characters and subtle story lines that all build to an explosive ending.

    There are numerous little sight gags and one-liners that had the audience in stitches throughout the film, as well as touching moments that had you really rooting for Eddie, the anti-hero. Sean Harris does an excellent job in the lead role and is supported by a cast that most people will never have seen before but who are all superb, particularly the actor who plays the estate villain. I'd never seen or heard of him before but he certainly made the head bailiff extremely menacing.

    It's hard to find fault with the film, even more so when you find out that this film was made on a shoestring budget by a first time feature writer/director. It never feels that way and looks superb. Sure you can see that a few corners have been cut here and there but it never detracts from what is a completely rewarding ninety minutes!
    3pipeau95

    Disappointing despite early promise

    After the first few minutes I was very much looking forward to the rest of this film. Unfortunately it failed to deliver. A few bright moments in the script to begin with, but these gradually petered out.

    A decent performance from Sarah Matravers, particularly in the early scenes, but she then became woefully under-utilised as the film plodded on.

    I don't suppose it should be possible to meander at pace, but this film managed to do just that. We'll have to wait for the next offering to find out if this was due to the direction or the script - it wasn't the acting, which had some merit.

    Hugely disappointed
    9mdorigo-1

    Refreshing script with a sensational cast

    A refreshing UK offering that strikes a great balance between urban crime story and social comment tinged with just the right amount of comic relief. Terrific characters brought to life by a great cast. Slow at first but the tension that is created is well worth it - you are drawn down the often dark journey with hints of light allowed to shine. You just never know when and how. The sensational acting does not let the script down. One hopes that this first film of Greg Loftin will pave the way for new investment so that his next film does not have to be on such a shoe string budget. Not that it suffered from a low budget - the script and acting make up for it completely.
    7DelBongo

    Saxon

    Saxon's press notes boast of its adherence to, and playfulness with, the rules and conventions of the great American westerns, but it is a very pleasant surprise to observe just how subtle and shrewd those genre nods are.

    The plot is appropriately simple: Eddie (Sean Harris) returns home to the grim, ghostly Saxon housing estate after both a brief spell in prison, and a visit from a sadistic loan shark. With his one functioning eyeball on the line, Eddie tries to make a fast buck by interacting with a succession of the estate's most volatile misfits, in an attempt to track down a minor local celebrity who has inexplicably vanished.

    It is an irrefutable oddity for sure, but the plot's fiendish momentum does exert a palpable grip, and for a film shot for almost nothing, it looks outstanding; composed entirely of wide- angled hand-held shots, it comes off (visually, at least) like a collaboration between Luc Besson and Andrew Bujalski. But the ominous, whacked-out aura is all its own.

    This is simply perfect if you're in the mood for some impeccably crafted weird.
    5Chris_Docker

    A quirky and heroic attempt, but uneven and needing polish

    The Saxons were famous for North Sea piracy. In the 5th Century, there was an area of England known as 'litora Saxonica', owing either to the liability to Saxon attack or, as some think, the establishment of Saxon colonies there.

    Saxon is also the name of a grim, modern-day council estate in London. A place where people are under constant threat from brutal bailiffs.

    Fast Eddie just wants to get away. To Spain, preferably. But fresh out of the nick for killing a bailiff, trouble seems to follow him. Like the £500 he borrowed before going inside. It's now turned into £10,000. Loan shark Sammy removes one of Eddie's eyes. Just to keep things running smoothly. Now Eddie looks a bit of a prat with a bandage over one eye. Linda, an old sweetheart, wants nothing to do with him. But she needs a favour a too. So Eddie gets hired as her private detective to track down missing millionaire husband Kevin. A job that soon gets him into even more bother.

    Saxon erupts onto the screen and it takes a little longer than usual to get comfy again in your seat. Is it a thriller? A comedy? A violent slice-of-life soap? Or a western, a fantasy-adventure, transported to an unlikely setting? Nothing seems to fit. Eddie has the air of a Don Quixote. He hasn't had the time to find his feet before trouble finds him. He tramps about uneasily. By turns, an object of fear and ridicule.

    With such uncertain genre signals, one of the difficulties with Saxon is believing in the characters. They seem reality-challenged without being fully surreal. High production values could bring off such an uneasy marriage in O Brother Where Art Thou, but I felt Saxon expected a lot of me to suspend disbelief in the face of such uneven characterisation. There are moments of touching brilliance, such as when Eddie and his mother meet up. In the dark, she doesn't recognise him. She calls out her services of the night - before they come face to face in mutual pain and embarrassment. At other times we have to give it a big benefit of the doubt to avoid the feeling that we are watching acting-by-numbers.

    What is so sad is that there are so many dazzling ideas here, so much talent that simply hasn't been polished into a sufficiently finished end-product. The film's website describes it as made with "hope, love, half a shoestring & private equity." Actors have received minimal fees and deferred payment.

    Eddie is remarkably elevated to a protagonist of almost mythical qualities by the end of the film. Greg Loftin (who debuts as director, writer, executive producer, editor, and casting director) accomplishes a supreme feat of pulling his many larger-than-life characters together in a clever and strangely satisfying finale. His first feature is an undoubted accomplishment. People have worked very hard to get it to the point where it has been nominated for the Edinburgh International Film Festival Michael Powell Award. The best reason to see it might be to witness such raw talent rearing its head on a non-existent budget. But it might also leave audiences feeling they have paid to see a stupendous student-level film rather than a movie worthy of mainstream release.

    As with any review, the opinion is only that of one reviewer. Saxon's quirkiness may hit you like a breath of fresh air, its originality enliven a jaded palate or two, or it might prove me wrong and win the Michael Powell. Or maybe I'm right and, in spite of the undeveloped qualities hiding beneath the surface, Saxon remains a missable low-brainer.

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    Related interests

    Will Ferrell in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)
    Comedy
    Mahershala Ali and Alex R. Hibbert in Moonlight (2016)
    Drama
    Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway in Chinatown (1974)
    Mystery
    Cho Yeo-jeong in Parasite (2019)
    Thriller
    John Wayne and Harry Carey Jr. in The Searchers (1956)
    Western

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Farzana Dua Elahe's debut.
    • Quotes

      Eddie: Trouble leads to trouble which leads to trouble...

    • Connections
      Referenced in The Micro Budget Cookbook (2008)

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • August 22, 2007 (United Kingdom)
    • Country of origin
      • United Kingdom
    • Official site
      • Official site
    • Language
      • English
    • Filming locations
      • Roundshaw, Sutton, England, UK
    • Production company
      • Sillwood Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 32m(92 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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