The most grippingly intense film I've seen in a long time, Green Room is everything you could want from Jeremy Saulnier's follow-up to Blue Ruin.
It follows a young punk rock band begrudgingly playing at an outback neo-Nazi compound who see the aftermath of a murder, making them witnesses to something the ruthless perpetrators want to make damn sure there are no witnesses of.
This simple set-up allows for several nail-biting powder keg situations, expertly crafted and punctuated with explosions of hugely effective violence.
The band members feel very genuine and react in believable ways to the horrors befalling them -- some are useless and freak out, others make level-headed and smart decisions. The villains are terrifyingly cold and realistic, too, rather than cartoonishly evil.
There's something very tactile about the way Saulnier directs action, especially that of a firearm nature. He has the ability to make guns feel much more realistic than in most films, so when they're being used on-screen it almost feels like you can reach out and grab them.
He's also highly skilled at portraying the blade and attack dog violence of Green Room, too, which is horrifically visceral, no doubt largely thanks to the favouring of practical effects over CGI.
A lot of what I'm describing paints a picture of a big, loud movie; but Green Room is somehow small and quiet for the most part, no matter what's going on. The loudest moments are when music is blasting, rather than the guns.
Speaking of the music, the tracks chosen are bang on, my personal favourite being from Slayer. Conversations the younger characters have about music are superbly written and acted, too, making them instantly recognisable and relatable as the idealistic, disaffected kids.
The entire cast is great, particularly Anton Yelchin, who tragically died recently. Green Room is a demonstration that he was taken from us just as he was reaching his prime.
Saulnier doesn't put a foot wrong for almost the entire film, right up until close to the end where there are just a couple of minor missteps. These do nothing to sully the overall experience, however, which is one I recommend enormously to fans of powerful cinema.
Four-and-a-half stars.
This film is playing as part of the 2016 New Zealand International Film Festival.
Green Room:: Director: Jeremy Saulnier:: Starring: Anton Yelchin, Imogen Poots, Patrick Stewart, Alia Shawkat, Joe Cole, Callum Turner, Mark Webber, Eric Edelstein, Macon Blair, Kai Lennox:: Rating: R18 - Graphic violence, drug use and offensive language:: Running Time: 95 minutes
Newshub.