Stars: Christopher Eccleston, Ewan McGregor, Kerry Fox, Ken Stott, Colin McCredie, Keith Allen, Peter Mullan

Director: Danny Boyle

Summary: When David, Alex and Juliet's perfect flatmate dies on them they go to great lengths to dispose of the body in order to keep the money found at the scene of death. However, they didn't make allowances for the people from whom the money came.

After three Edinburgh roommates (Ewan McGregor, Christopher Eccleston, and Kerry Fox) finally choose a new roommate they can live with, they find him dead on the floor with a suitcase full of cash. While trying to remove the body and extricate themselves from the situation, they wade hip-deep into a world of drugs, greed, and madness. Danny Boyle's first feature film is a delightfully circuitous, nail-biting, and unpretentious noir, with the director--and screenwriter John Hodge--focusing on the gradual psychological disintegration of the roommates. Boyle and Hodge would gain even greater acclaim across the Atlantic with their hit follow-up, TRAINSPOTTING. Eccleston would go on to appear in films such as ELIZABETH and THE OTHERS. McGregor, of course, would become Renton in TRAINSPOTTING and eventually Obi-Wan Kenobi, among many other screen roles.

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Possessed of startlingly fresh performances and a visual style of genuine panache, Shallow Grave was deservedly a BAFTA Best Film winner in 1994. This was clearly a film that deserved attention. Sure enough, the principal talents involved (Director Danny Boyle, Producer Andrew Macdonald, Writer John Hodge and actors Christopher Eccleston and Ewan McGregor) have gone on to huge successes both together (Trainspotting) and apart. The thriller's plot is simple enough: three flatmates take on a fourth (Keith Allen) who unexpectedly dies, leaving a mountain of cash behind. Who are your friends? Who can you trust? How far would you go for money? These are the questions facing Juliet (Kerry Fox), David (Eccleston) and Alex (McGregor) as the scenario spirals out of control around them. Somehow no matter what they do, the decisions seem to lead to one gruesome event after another. The film's often breakneck pace--backed by tunes from Leftfield--quickly became a much-copied style. Most agree that the copies pale beside the original, and this ice-cold morality poser remains the best view of post-80s greed on screen.

On the DVD: Although presented in widescreen anamorphic format, both picture and sound are not much better than an average video playback. Add a static menu and just one trailer and this release will probably disappoint today's DVD collector. --Paul Tonks

Aspect Ratio:	1.85 Wide Screen, 16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 2
Special Features:	Original Theatrical Trailer, Interactive Menu Screens, Chapter Selections
Subtitles:	Dutch, French
Year:	1994
Release Date:	September 17, 2001
Runtime:	88 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	19911 D V D
Keywords:	General, Wide, Screen, Grave, Shallow, Drama
Genre:	Drama