Shallow Grave

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Shallow Grave

R,

1995,

1h 32m,

Mystery & Thriller/

Crime/

Drama

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Watchlist

72%

54 Reviews

Tomatometer

83%

25,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

72%

Tomatometer

54 Reviews

83%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

When accountant David (Christopher Eccleston), doctor Juliet (Kerry Fox) and journalist Alex (Ewan McGregor) are searching for a fourth roommate for their trendy flat, they settle on the aloof Hugo (Keith Allen). However, they soon find Hugo dead of a drug overdose, beside a large sum of cash. After some deliberation, the three others decide to keep the money and to dismember and bury Hugo's body. Soon, each roommate starts thinking about keeping all the money by scamming the others.

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Critics Consensus

This black-humored thriller features characters who are more obnoxious than clever. During the second half, the movie descends into gratuitous violence.

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Kevin Maher

The Times (UK)

May 10, 2024

4/5

From the moment those electronic beats of Leftield start pounding on the soundtrack and Boyle’s camera begins racing around the cobbled streets of Edinburgh, the film announces itself as a propulsive thrill ride.

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

May 9, 2024

5/5

A sour treat.

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Anthony Lane

The New Yorker

Sep 7, 2020

Danny Boyle does wonders with a small budget, and the suave, dense-hued look of his movie stays with you long after the horror has evaporated.

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Sarah Boslaugh

TheArtsStl

Jul 12, 2025

8/10

Few things are less fun than finding out you’re not as smart as you think you are, and when a character played by Peter Mullan is after you, you can guess the outcome won’t be pleasant.

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Adrian Turner

Radio Times

Sep 6, 2024

5/5

Boyle's film bursts with energy and springs some deliciously macabre surprises, and he is rewarded with wonderful performances from Ewan McGregor, Christopher Eccleston and Kerry Fox, whose characters are all outwardly ordinary yet inwardly strange.

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Grant Watson

Fiction Machine

Oct 5, 2022

10/10

It presents a funny comedy that shifts into a bleakly amusing criminal caper, before descending into what is more or less a home invasion thriller.

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Ron R

Jun 22, 2017

Three friends discover their new flatmate dead but loaded with cash.

Luke W

Jun 19, 2017

G 7.8 [Danny Boyle]

Theodore M

Jan 29, 2017

Movie night with Iris. I remember disliking this on it's 90's release, but 20-years later i enjoyed it a lot more. Yes all three of them are loathsome, but it's worth hanging in there to see redemption/resolution. Early strong work from Danny Boyle.

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Anakin S

Oct 31, 2016

WHAT I LIKED: The entirety of 'Shallow Grave' drives for the darkest possible humour, and rather surprisingly it often lands. This is particularly the case in the slightly-more-subtle first half where great performances from this stellar crew shine through far more strongly, and the strong direction pay off best. WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE: Unfortunately you're left thinking things have gone a bit too far as it goes on because everything spirals out of control, even though very little actually occurs to get you invested. By the end the plot and humour is so off track that it struggles to make any sort of narrative sense at all. Payoff? A disappointing ending with a weak thematic through-line to match. VERDICT: There's no doubt Boyle is an able film-maker, but his intent here largely gets lost by the end.

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Leia R

Sep 5, 2014

An odd and somewhat disturbing film. For a black comedy it wasn't bad, but I wouldn't want to see it a second time. (First and only viewing - 8/6/2016)

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Rey P

Sep 13, 2007

Taken as a whole, Shallow Grave is a reasonably enjoyable (for those captivated by this sort of thing) black comedy/noir thriller that justifies at least a portion of the praise heaped upon it from overseas.

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Danny Boyle

Director

Kerry Fox

Juliet Miller

Christopher Eccleston

David Stephens

Ewan McGregor

Alex Law

Ken Stott

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Synopsis

When accountant David (Christopher Eccleston), doctor Juliet (Kerry Fox) and journalist Alex (Ewan McGregor) are searching for a fourth roommate for their trendy flat, they settle on the aloof Hugo (Keith Allen). However, they soon find Hugo dead of a drug overdose, beside a large sum of cash. After some deliberation, the three others decide to keep the money and to dismember and bury Hugo's body. Soon, each roommate starts thinking about keeping all the money by scamming the others.

Director: Danny Boyle
Producer: Andrew Macdonald
Screenwriter: John Hodge
Distributor: MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc., Miramax Films
Production Co: PolyGram Filmed Entertainment
Rating: R
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 10, 1995, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jul 23, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA): $1.7M
Runtime: 1h 32m
Sound Mix: Surround, Stereo

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