SHAPE SHIFTER (A FIELD IN ENGLAND)

Every now and again, English cinema throws up distinctive, uncompromising and imaginative new voices.

Ken Loach announced himself as a cinematic force with 'Poor Cow' in 1967 and 'Kes' two years later.

Then he dabbled in television before returning to the big screen with powerful left wing drama such as 'Hidden Agenda', 'Riff Raff', 'Raining Stones', 'Land and Freedom', 'The Wind That Shakes The Barley' and the quirky comedy, 'Looking for Eric'.

Mike Leigh announced himself as a major filmmaking talent in 1971 with 'Bleak Moments', flitted between the theatre and BBC television plays, before going on to make some classic films like 'High Hopes', 'Life Is Sweet', 'Naked', 'Secrets and Lies', 'Vera Drake' and 'Happy Go Lucky'.

In recent years, Shane Meadows with films as varied as 'Twenty-Four Seven', 'Dead Man's Shoes', 'This Is England' and 'Le Donk and Scor-zay-zee'.

Andrea Arnold has also emerged with the powerful hat trick of 'Red Road', 'Fish Tank' and 'Wuthering Heights' which have bowled over critics and indie cinema fans.

The latest English filmmaker to create quite a stir is Ben Wheatley, a Billericay born fine arts graduate who cut his filmmaking teeth making commercials, writing and directing BBC comedy sketch shows but also built his career as an animator and creator of viral videos on the Internet.

In 2009, Wheatley quickly established himself as a filmmaker with huge potential with 'Down Terrace' - a drama about a dysfunctional Brighton crime family which veered into comedy.

This refusal to strictly adhere to the rules of the genre has become Wheatley's most distinctive cinematic trait.

In 2011, English cinema's shapeshifter shook critics with the crime horror movie, 'Kill List', about two ex-soldiers (Neil Maskell and Belfast comedian Michael Smiley) who carve out a career as hitmen but take on a job that has disturbing consequences for both them -- especially Maskell.

Last year, he cemented his status as Britain's most exhilarating filmmaker with 'Sightseers', a black comedy about two caravaners (Alice Lowe and Steve Oram) who go on a murder spree. The film played out like a sinister version of Mike Leigh's 'Nuts In May'.

In Wheatley's world, nothing ever is as it seems.

Just when you think his plots are heading in one direction, the ground rotates and his characters and audiences are left spinning in a state of disorientation.

Wheatley's latest 'A Field In England' begins like an English civil war historical drama but then turns into a psychedelic black and white thriller.

Much has been made of the fact that Wheatley chose to simultaneously release 'A Field in England' in cinemas, on DVD and blu ray and also screen it on the Film 4 TV channel on the day of its release.

But leaving aside for one moment that brave marketing tactic, the film is hard for critics to pigeon hole because it stubbornly defies convention.

It begins with a point of view shot as an alchemist from Norwich frantically scrambles through some bushes to get away from a civil war battle and his strict master, Trower (Julian Barratt from 'The Mighty Boosh').

The alchemist, Whitehead ('League of Gentlemen' creator, Reece Shearsmith) stumbles upon other Civil War deserters, Jacob (Peter Ferdinando), Friend (Richard Glover) and Cutler (Ryan Pope).

Together they set off for an ale house but after consuming magic mushrooms in a stew, events taking a sinister turn when they encounter O'Neill (played by Michael Smiley), another alchemist, tethered to a rope.

The Irishman mutters about buried treasure in the field and they begin to dig for it only to discover a lot more than they bargained for.

Fans of classic British horror films will find much to revel in in Wheatley's latest work.

Smiley's character, in particular, recalls Vincent Price's in 'The Witchfinder General' and, like 'Kill List', there is the same sense of foreboding a la 'The Wicker Man'.

Yet even horror fans must prepare to be confounded.

Wheatley's film, made on a modest budget of £300,000, is stylish and daring - mixing point of view shots and extreme close-ups with tableau vivant shots that are reminiscent of Stanley Kubrick's 'Barry Lyndon'.

The director uses slow motion to sinister effect - including one disturbing scene where another one of the characters is tied to a rope and, in one wonderful section early on in the film, he disorientates his audience as Whitehead stumbles around the field to a muffled and ringing soundtrack following an explosion.

Astutely written by Wheatley's wife and collaborator, Amy Jump, there is strobing and blood curdling screaming off camera.

And while some characters speak like Historical Drama characters, others like Jacob are modern, lacing their words with expletives.

The two standout performances are Michael Smiley's and Reece Shearsmith's.

Smiley is suitably creepy as O'Neill - his Northern Irish accent full of menace.

Shearsmith is so good, he recalls Edward Woodward's pious Christian policeman in Robin Hardy's 1973 horror classic 'The Wicker Man' (which Wheatley also referenced in 'Kill List').

The evocative black and white cinematography by Laurie Rose is simply superb, as is the editing by Wheatley and Jump.

The choice of folk music, especially 'Ring a Ring o Roses', only heightens the atmosphere of impending doom.

'A Field in England' has been screening in the QFT and arthouse cinemas up and down the country.

In a smart move in the middle of Murray mania, Wheatley opted for a simultaneous release on DVD, blu ray and film on demand services while screening the movie without ad breaks on Film 4 for one night.

That has undoubtedly attracted much media attention and film industry interest and we may well see other low budget filmmakers go down this cross-platform distribution path.

If you haven't caught 'A Field in England' in cinemas, that's a shame.

But don't despair. It is well worth watching on DVD or On Demand from the comfort of your own living room. 

At least at home, you'll have a cushion to clutch onto.

('A Field in England' was released simultaneously in cinemas, on DVD and Film 4's Video On Demand service on July 5, 2013. This review originally appeared on Eamonnmallie.com)