Directed by Tim Biddiscombe
Review by David Carter


Released by TLA Releasing
Running Time: 77 minutes
Rating: Not Rated
Color format: Color
Audio/Subtitles: 5.1 Dolby Digital Stereo English
Region Code: 1, NTSC
Aspect Ratio: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1
16:9 Enhanced: Yes
Special Features: Commentary track, making of, short
Trailer Online: Yes

Short Version: Taut, well-acted thriller

When one thinks of the gangster film, the first places to pop to mind are likely America, Italy, and Japan. The mafia and the yakuza have done an excellent job of dividing gangster cinema between themselves and have dominated the market since the early days of cinema. A new player came on the scene in the nineties: Great Britain. England has always had organized crime and, indeed, even gangster cinema, but it wasn’t until Guy Ritchie put his stamp on the genre with 1998’s LOCK, STOCK, & TWO SMOKING BARRELS that the rest of the world began looking to Britain for their gangster fix. Ritchie’s films not only reinvigorated the gangster genre, but gave it a new style, setting the tone for later entries from all nations.

First time British director Tim Biddiscombe’s NIGHT DRAGON clearly shows a Ritchie influence but doesn’t fall into the trap of simple imitation as so many others do. NIGHT DRAGON takes some stylistic notes from Ritchie – as well as Tarantino and Rodriguez – and couples them with an excellently realized original story. Add in a handful of memorable performances and you’ve got an outstanding low-budget thriller. NIGHT DRAGON is available on DVD from TLA Releasing.

Liz has found herself in a bit of a predicament. She’s been tasked by the rough gangster Hansen to find out the location of a witness against him in an upcoming trial. To do this, Liz has seduced a young attorney named Millie and began a relationship with her in hopes that she’ll let the secret slip. Liz is far more patient than Hansen, who sends his goons Christian and Beckett to torture the location out of Millie – a horrible scene that Liz walks in on accidentally. Christian injects Millie with “night dragon,” a potent and potentially lethal hallucinogen. Liz convinces the gang to give her one more try and soon finds herself locked in a battle of wills with her brokenhearted and drugged former lover.

A good deal of the film is dedicated to the struggle between Liz and Millie, which is realized exceptionally well by leads Imogen Church and Annette Kellow. The two made the relationship between their characters seem very authentic; a key factor in the film’s overall success. Their emotional back-and-forth is mirrored by Christian and Beckett’s constant bickering. The dialogue between the two is well-written, helps flesh out the story more, and serves as comic relief so that the drama between Liz and Millie doesn’t overwhelm the film. NIGHT DRAGON is nicely balanced between being a crime thriller and a drama centering on the dissolution of a relationship and I don’t think the film would have worked as well had it been more focused on one than the other.

Biddiscombe uses a non-linear structure for NIGHT DRAGON. The opening two scenes happen months apart (presumably), and the film continually shifts between present and past action. This technique is successful since the audience will catch on rather quickly but I will say that it is just a stylistic flair that doesn’t really enhance the narrative in a meaningful way. There would have been no change to the film had it been chronological and the technique is abandoned for the film’s final quarter, save one flashback to a few minutes prior. I feel this is a case of Biddiscombe being too consciously influenced by Ritchie, et al. rather than trying to find his own voice. Similarly, the film has a “fake” ending followed by a “shock” ending. Both choices were a bit cliché, but I would have preferred to see Biddiscombe choose the first ending since the second shock ending has been more prevalent in recent years.

TLA Releasing’s DVD of NIGHT DRAGON is in fine shape: a good print of the film coupled with some nice special features. NIGHT DRAGON has a good plot and is paced very well but, again, I would have liked to see the director go in a more original direction with the material. Biddiscombe appears to have all the ingredients and the talent to make good films, though, and I’m looking forward to his next project.