Happy New Year, Colin Burstead

At a time when Wheatley’s native England is still in the middle of a pretty volatile separation period, this film’s examination of hostility, but also the need for peace, feels especially needed.

Why should we care about this unhappy family when their unhappiness is neither distinctive nor memorable? If we have to rely simply on the quality of the insults, all is lost.

Ultimately, this comedy of bad manners is compelling in the way of Yorgos Lanthimos (The Killing of a Sacred Deer, The Favourite) where you watch, wide-eyed, unable to look away. Some may find that Colin Burstead doesn’t quite reach those ecstatic heights, but if you have a heart for British misanthropy, this one’s for you.

Some may find it a little too stagey, others won't appreciate the dark humour, but, during this holiday season, Happy New Year, Colin Burstead might make you thankful that your family isn't as dysfunctional as this one.

Some may find it a little too stagey, others won't appreciate the dark humour, but, during this holiday season, Happy New Year, Colin Burstead might make you thankful that your family isn't as dysfunctional as this one.

Ben Wheatley strips things way back for his nerve-raddled family reunion comedy, and the result is one of his best, most fluid films.

Every minute of this film has something of interest, every frame is well composed. And yet I admit I found there was something a bit contrived and unreal about it, like an epic improv session.

This never quite feels entirely its own film. As a display of terrific acting, however, Happy New Year... comes up trumps.

Plenty of classy ingredients here, but Wheatley's tentative first foray into the realm of adult drama is not the heart-bruising emotional assault course it could have been.