Mischief Night Review

For those of you who didn't know, Mischief Night is a Yorkshire tradition that coincides with the Autumnal celebrations of Halloween and Guy Fawkes' Night. On 4 November every year, chaos is sanctioned as kids run riot playing pranks, somewhat akin to trick-or-treating - but without the treat option. This annual event forms the backdrop of Penny Woolcock's film.

Mischief Night is a pretty funky proposition from the get-go: after the characters are introduced in freeze-frame with on-screen text, we move off into Woolcock's hyper-real version of the Beeston area of Leeds, which is all bright colours and blazing sunshine. Indeed, this is very much a global warming vision of Britain - it's set in the autumn and winter but shot in the summer, so the trees are in full bloom and everyone is in T-shirts. It's somewhat jarring, but it doesn't mar Woolcock's lively, inventive film.

The closest comparison for Mischief Night is the TV series 'Shameless', what with its council estate settings and robust sense of humour. Indeed, 'Shameless' and Mischief Night share a production company, a composer, Murray Gold, and even some actors, such as Kelli Hollis. Hollis actually reprises her role as Tina from Woolcock's earlier, smaller scale films Tina Goes Shopping (1999) and Tina Takes a Break (2001).