08/09/2023 - VENICE 2023: Moin Hussain's debut feature boasts several fascinating aesthetic elements and an appealing lead, but it is a slow-burn experience that risks disengaging viewers

Moin Hussain’s debut feature, titled Sky Peals [+see also:
interview: Moin Hussain
film profile], is one of the titles which world-premiered in the International Film Critics' Week of the Venice Film Festival. In this Northern England-set film, the London-based writer-director chooses to zoom in on a thirty-something man called Adam (portrayed by Faraz Ayub), who works night shifts at a motorway fast-food restaurant, leading a small and lonely life with little human contact or interaction. Upon hearing that his estranged father has died, Adam finds himself piecing together a complicated image of a man that he never really knew and uncovers details of his life that he struggles to comprehend. Learning that his father believed he was not human but an alien, Adam initially dismisses the notion outright but, of course, this absurd mystery begins to shake him up.

On the whole, the picture manages to create a puzzling, eerie atmosphere and the narrative premise seems to bode well for the development of the story. The character of Adam is also rather original, and Ayub imbues his role with a quiet and confused demeanour, making him hard to decipher and powerless as everything happens around him.

The only comforting presence in Adam's withdrawn existence may be Lara (Natalie Givin), a young single mum who works at the fast-food restaurant with him. She may have developed a romantic interest towards Adam who, however, never feels free to explore positive emotions and enjoy his life. 

There is also an obsessive layer added to his personality, as we see him rewinding some security footage and observing his father’s last steps. A bizarre glitch in the footage begins convincing him about his parent’s otherworldly nature. His relationship with his mother also looks problematic, as we may guess from the few times he answers her calls.

Aesthetically speaking, the cinematography work by Nick Cooke is characterised by a spot-on dark blue and dark green colour palette along with neon lighting, which gives an inhospitable and depressing look to the environment Adam inhabits, more evidently so in the scenes set inside the fast-food restaurant.

What works less throughout is, however, the film's pacing, which makes for a slow-burn viewing experience but may be quite disengaging for some. More drama and tension would have been useful, especially for such a cryptic and intimate tale.

That being said, Hussain offers some intriguing cinematic ingredients and a subtle and rare directorial touch, which he will hopefully perfected in his next efforts.

Sky Peals was produced by British outfit Escape Films. Bankside Films is in charge of its international sales.