British Quad for PIGGY (2012)
US One-Sheet Poster for PIGGY (2012)
US One-Sheet Poster (Style 4A-I)
PIGGY is ultimately Mr. Hawkes’ exploration of a theme less concerned with violent
revenge (although the film features a lot of it) but rather the psychological effect such
action has on Joe. His character arc is a descent into darkness, a realisation about his
true self. The film truly deserves credit for revealing an engaging and thought-provoking
theme at its heart.
Synopsis: Joe (Martin Compston) is a mild mannered young man bored by his humdrum London life. When his beloved brother (Neil Maskell) is murdered, Joe finds solace in Piggy, one of his brother’s old friends. Piggy (Paul Anderson) helps Joe to cope with grief, intent on saving him and helping him get justice for his brother’s killing. As their friendship grows Joe finds himself in an increasing dangerous and murky world of violence and revenge. As Joe’s life collapses around him he starts to question who Piggy really is, and how honest he’s really been with him. When Joe confronts Piggy a series of events are put in place that lead to a disastrous climax.
- Title: PIGGY
- Running Time: 106 min
- Country Of Origin: UK
- Director: Kieron Hawkes
- Writer: Kieron Hawkes
- Original Music: Bill Ryder-Jones
- Cinematography: James Friend
- Language: English
- Release Date: May 4th 2012 (Ireland)
- DVD Release: May 21st 2012
- Production Companies: DP Films, Fulwell 73
- Filming Locations: London, England, UK
- Starring: Paul Anderson, Martin Compston, Neil Maskell, Louise Dylan,
Roland Manookian, Ebony Gilbert, Kate Korbel, Daniel Harland, Ed Skrein
- Details: Piggy is the feature directorial debut from the young British writer
and Mr. Kieron Hawkes
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Great Scenes from
PIGGY (2012)
Martin Compston and Paul Anderson in a scene from PIGGY (2012)
Paul Anderson and Martin Compston in a brutal scene from PIGGY (2012)
As the story unfolds and Joe unravels, Mr. Compston reveals the levels of grief,
anger, fear and loss of control with a measured, rewarding performance. Piggy is a dangerous vigilante who stalks his victims in a predatory way, and he is also all too
believable and recognizable; relishing and embracing his violent tendencies.
Paul Anderson brandishing a heavy pipe in PIGGY (2012)
Piggy is a good, solid debut from Director Kieron Hawkes and it will be interesting to
see what he does next. The film is intriguing and provocative and offers some
engrossing performances, particularly from Mr. Anderson and Mr. Compston.
Martin Compston in a tense scene from PIGGY (2012)
Paul Anderson in a menacing scene from PIGGY (2012)
The film is stylishly shot by cinematographer James Friend. London feels real, lived-in and not just a picture postcard of famous locations. The cinematography also captures Joe’s sense of drifting through life more successfully than either the script or acting. Its blurry, out-of-focus style brings to life the stoned haze with which Joe experiences his life.
Martin Compston (left) listening to Paul Anderson (right) in a scene from
the new British horror film PIGGY (2012)
For the most part the acting is excellent. Neil Maskell brings his dominant and intimidating presence from Kill List to bear and steals the early part of the film. Then Paul Anderson arrives as the impressively terrifying and unpredictable Piggy. He is the driving force of the story and as such the film’s success weighs heavily on Anderson’s shoulders, which his overall performance is very successful.
Paul Anderson points the finger at Martin Compston
H D Official PIGGY trailer here
Piggy belongs to that contemporary trend of British revenge thrillers which reached its zenith with Shane Meadows’ Dead Man’s Shoes in 2004, and was seen most recently
in the Michael Caine vehicle Harry Brown in 2008. It’s a violent film about the
underbelly of life in London which raises interesting questions around justice,
revenge, grief and the effects they have on people.
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The stars from new British thriller PIGGY
were out celebrating its up-coming release
at the official UK premiere on April 5, 2012
Photography by Despina Chroussis
"I’m shitting my little knickers to be honest with you... I’ve got this overwhelming feeling the after party’s just going to be me and one of my mates." Kieron Hawkes - Director
Photography by Despina Chroussis
"I’m a little bit nervous, it’s always funny seeing it with an audience
for the first time, I think we've got a good little film on our hands."
Martin Compston (Joe)
Photography by Despina Chroussis
"Martin’s lovely, he’s really great, it’s just like he’s so there and he’s so in the mood, it’s
just amazing, I love working with people like that because you can just switch into that
world and just be there." - Louise Dylan (Claire)
Photography by Despina Chroussis
Ebony Gilbert and Kate Korbel
Click here for exclusive interview with Kate
Photography by Despina Chroussis
"I’m just excited to see it to be honest, this is going to be the first time I've ever seen
myself in a film, this is the first film of mine that’s been released, I've got Ill Manors
coming out in three or four weeks." - Ed Skrein (Jamie)
On working with Kieron: "He’s amazing, he’s one of the best directors I’ve worked with, because he is so open to your opinion. Writers can be precious about what they’ve written and he’s not at all, and if you say ‘I don’t want to say this’ then he’s like ‘don’t say it’, which is great. He just allows you to work on the character, to work together and develop it together, which is wonderful." - Louise
"I’ve been friends with Kieron since we were teenagers actually. Since before he was even interested in film making, over the years I did all of his short films that he did when he was at college at London Film School. Then he edited the short that I directed and edited Turnout that I was involved with, then he sent me this script and it was a good script, good part, that’s how I ended up doing it." - Neil
"As I talked to Kieron I was just sold, I was like, I want to be a part of this. It was just his outlook on films and everything, we spoke for a long time and I could just relate to his visage, I will only work with people that I share the same artistic morals and vision with and he’s a hundred percent in that kettle of fish." - Ed
Kieron Hawkes (Director) with Louise Dylan at the Premiere of PIGGY
"It’s difficult to say how it will be received, I’ve read a few of the reviews already online and they are mixed, If there is London accents in films then people have very, very odd reference points in comparison. It seems to me as soon as anyone opens their mouth in a London accent there is some weird comparison to Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and it couldn’t be further away from it actually, it’s bizarre. But I suppose maybe a lot of reviewers or those who write blogs are university educated, middle class people who can’t differentiate between completely different cinema the minute someone has a London or cockney accent." - Neil Maskell
Photography by Despina Chroussis
