Elfie Hopkins - aka Elfie Hopkins: Cannibal Hunter – is a 2012 British horror film directed by Ryan Andrews from a script co-written with Riyad Barmania. It stars Jaime Winstone, Ray Winstone, Steven Mackintosh, Rupert Evans, Aneurin Barnard and Kimberley Nixon.
The film was released in the UK on 20 April 2012 by Black & Blue Films and Kaleidoscope Entertainment.
Plot teaser:
Twenty-two-year-old slacker Elphie Hopkins (Jaime Winstone) is a “wanna-be” detective who lives in a sleepy village. She is a stoner and an animal lover, and haunted by the death of her mother. Surrounded by her broken father and alcoholic step-mother, Elfie seeks solace and inspiration from the old school detectives in The Maltese Falcon and Chinatown. She entertains herself, along with her geeky best friend, Dylan (Aneurin Barnard), by investigating the villagers and upsetting everyone with their imaginative allegations. Elfie’s mundane existence is thrown for a spin with the arrival of a family of trendy city dwellers, the Gammons.
The Gammons weave tales of adventure and seduce the villagers with offers of exotic hunting holidays around the world. It is not long before the villagers are flying off to the four corners of the world. Elfie, despite her best efforts, is not free to the Gammons’ charms, but soon smells a rat. Elfie and Dylan begin investigating the Gammons’ life. Bloody violence and pandemonium soon starts to rage in the village and it is no longer just the blood of animals. Elfie discovers the villagers are not making those flights and when she finally uncovers the truth, it is darker than she could have ever imagined…
Buy on DVD | Instant Video from Amazon.co.uk
Reviews:
This is a horrible class-driven fantasy bore populated by unreal public school characters in an ill-considered venture with no feel for what it tries (?) to mock, plus the obvious indulgent Winstone nepotism (Jaime acts bored, we understand) that just grates. In interviews, director Andrews cited this painful tripe as a throwback to 1990s cinema. It is. It’s bollocks. And not good bollocks. It’s condescending, at best, and insultingly, another addition to the kind of new wave of British horror we simply don’t need. A 2012 production on sale on Amazon for under a couple of quid, surely the final critical assessment?
Adrian J Smith, Horrorpedia
“It’s Ryan Andrews’ first feature film and he’s piled it high with cinematic references. He aims to evoke the provincial charm of Miss Marple, the deliciously ironic dialogue of Brick and the blood-splattered thrills of a gaudy B-horror. You so want him to pull it off, but most of the time you’d just rather watch the movies he’s been watching.” Jessica Lambert, Little White Lies
“The big problem is the character of Elfie who dresses kookily with blue streaks in her peroxide hair but is far less exciting than the filmmakers must assume, and a laidback Winstone plays her with little energy or charm. There’s a hint of camp pleasure to be gained from the film’s early soft-focus domestic scenes and late hysterics, but ‘Elfie Hopkins’ is sunk by a lame script and mannered performances.” Dave Calhoun, Time Out
” …an orgy of mistimed jokes, stumbling narration and dim performances. I felt like taking my felt pen to the film’s poster and turning the overindulged star’s name into “J’aime pas Winstone”. Phillip French, The Observer
“There’s a decent support cast including Ray Winstone and Gwyneth Keyworth, who’s suitably creepy as the childlike girl next door. But Jaime feels miscast and the dialogue, direction and tone waver wildly before getting completely lost. There’s kitsch value in the themes and costumes, but any cult appeal is not likely to be the kind the film was seeking.” Anna Smith, Empire
Cast:
- Jaime Winstone as Elfie Hopkins
- Aneurin Barnard as Dylan
- Steven Mackintosh as Michael
- Rupert Evans as Mr Gammon
- Kate Magowan as Mrs Gammon
- Julian Lewis Jones as Harry Hopkins
- Kimberley Nixon as Pippa
- Gwyneth Keyworth as Ruby Gammon
- Will Payne as Elliot Gammon
- Ray Winstone as Butcher Bryn
- Richard Harrington as Timothy Jenkins
Filming locations:
Wales
Useful links:
Wikipedia | IMDb | Facebook | Kaleidoscope Film Distribution
