Wasteman

Taylor is in prison and close to parole; he is almost the only one inside who has managed to stay clear of drugs, gangs and fights. Then a new cellmate named Dee arrives and the balance he built comes apart. In his first film Cal McMau keeps the camera close throughout; almost nothing is visible beyond the wing, the corridor and the cell, and when the violence starts there is no frame left for the audience to escape into. David Jonsson and Tom Blyth lead. The idea is in the title: a label attached to a person by the people around him becomes, after a while, what he thinks about himself. It won best debut director at the British Independent Film Awards. Who it is for: viewers who like hard British prison drama. Who it is not for: anyone claustrophobic or unable to take graphic violence.