Review: Mike Tweddle's indie Sparrowhawk thriller packs an unsettling punch

Does an independent, feature-length film shot in just one location spell out a recipe for disaster or something much better?

Well, although I can safely say that the recipe for making Sparrowhawk was pretty simple, it delivers a heavy, thrilling kick.

With a small £12k budget to play with, writer and director Mike Tweddle shot his second film in an abandoned, dilapidated warehouse.

The entire film has seven actors; it took just two weeks to film the entirety on a Canon C300 camera; and it was edited over a period of 12 months - but Broken Scar Productions clearly understands the dynamics of small time frames and budgets.

It doesn’t lack in the main thing you’re after: suspense and a whole lot of second guessing every character in the room.

An interrogation is taking place; a man (homeless, apparently) who we come to know as Carl, is handcuffed and sits at a table in the middle of the workshop. He’s been brought in for the most bizarre police questioning I’ve ever seen, following a shooting at a local casino which has left four people dead.

Are you still with me? Great, it’s just getting started at this point. The police are asking Carl (Kenneth Scott Wallace) if they know the whereabouts of a strange, unidentified man named Hashim.

Both Carl and Hashim were pals in the army, and the oddball detectives believe Carl has links to Hashim, who’s supposedly meddling in the underworld of crime.

They believe Hashim was the reason behind the deaths at the casino, but they hardly have any evidence to prove it. This is where Mallory (Anthony Howard) comes in. This is where it turns violent, a whole lot weirder than before and even slightly deadly.

The suspense level certainly amplifies once Mallory enters the room, and rightly so.

Mike Tweddle did a great job of casting Anthony Howard as this guy; he plays an utterly believable, twisted and sarcastic psychotic. He’s the leader of the pack, selfish; he honestly doesn’t care for anyone other than himself. He’ll stroke your hair, and then spit in your face.

He would definitely watch you die and enjoy it, no biggie. Mallory wants Hashim dead too, period. He’s not going to stop until that happens by the looks of things, and poor Carl gets the brunt of it.

Throughout the entire film, the characters’ stories begin to unravel, slowly uncovering some dark truths and major flaws.

As a viewer, you’ll probably be asking yourself a lot of questions and, at times, the plot might slightly lose its course - but your attention springs back into focus with the introduction of every new character and question.

For such a small budget, the cinematography is wonderful. It’s sharp, it’s dark and sets the tone just right. It’s what you’re after with an independent thriller.

Although it’s bleak, minimal and definitely miserable, it has an uncanny sense of excitement and foreboding for what’s to come.

The only questionable part of the entire film? The fact Kenneth Scott Wallace’s pearly white teeth are beaming in your face whilst playing the role of a homeless man.

A tad unrealistic, but we can let it slide - we definitely have more important things to focus on; like not getting murdered by Mallory, after all.

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