After an Oscar-winning run making short films, British director Andrea Arnold made her big screen debut with Red Road. This "eerie" thriller focusing on a surveillance camera operator (Kate Dickie) didn't storm the box office, but it did earn Arnold a BAFTA and the Jury prize at Cannes. The makers of the overrated Blair Witch Project could surely learn a lesson in suspense filmmaking from her.

Tales From The Road

Speaking between takes, Arnold reflects on the differences between making short films and a feature. Perhaps not surprisingly she remarks on how much more organisation is needed to ensure that the wheels run smoothly on Red Road. She also spends a lot of time talking about Glasgow, which although portrayed in this film in a pretty grim light, is a city she claims to adore. "I've been fantasising about living here," she insists, "I love it so much!"

Interviews with the cast reveal that Arnold is fairly accommodating as a director, encouraging their input and occasional improvisation. Dickie says of her character, "I felt I knew this woman," so she played it from instinct. Tony Curran, Martin Compston and Natalie Press echo these sentiments, but the latter also admits that, "This was a very, very tough shoot, which added to the energy of it."

Seeing Red

It seems quite apt that a reel of behind-the-scenes footage should take a voyeuristic, fly-on-the-wall approach. Arnold looks on, angst-ridden, as the crew bustle around a Glaswegian pub in preparation for a scene which contrasts with silence in the surveillance booth as Dickie watches a bank of CCTV screens.

Disappointingly, Arnold doesn't provide commentary for the main feature, but despite its modest package of extras, filmgoers with an appetite for something daring and different will want to get an eyeful of this DVD.

EXTRA FEATURES

Red Road DVD is released on Monday 26th February 2007.