Frank (Actor John Bach) waits for explosion in distance
Set in a retirement home, New-Zealand film Rest For The Wicked is a darkly comic detective story with a bittersweet twist. Murray Baxter is a cop going undercover. His mission is simple, to finally put away his oldest rival, a hitman called Frank whose murderous ways show no sign of letting up. Just your standard detective story right? Well no, because both men are now in their seventies and Murray is undercover in Knightsbridge Gardens a rest home where life is anything but restful.
Knightsbridge Gardens is a place filled with more surprises and secrets than anyone would suspect. Sex, drugs, drink and dancing, the old folks may be in their twilight years but they are living life to the full. Using all his old skills, Murray is determined to uncover Frank, the killer on a mobility scooter, who seems to be making amends for his life of crime by bumping off bad guys.
Murray (Actor Tony Barry) reflects before picking up business card and calling lawyer
Esther (Actress Ilona Rodgers) at the dance
Rest For The Wicked was shot by cinematographer Jos Wheeler and directed by Simon Pattison. Jos explained that “we wanted the overall look of the film to have a natural warmth and brightness while giving certain scenes and environments a more dramatic or stylized look. Two good examples of this are a scene in Frank’s garage where the majority of the initial drama between Frank and Murray takes place and a later scene shot in the apartment of two other key characters, Graham and Lillian.”
Bullet making
“We didn’t even consider shooting digital,” continued Jos. “I shot Simon’s last project on 16mm and he really liked the look and feel we could achieve so right from the start we planned to shoot on 16mm. Although we had a relatively small budget, the support of Metro Films, Kodak and Film Lab and Images Post made it possible to shoot on film.”
The majority of Rest For The Wicked was shot on KODAK VISION3 200T Color Negative Film 5213 including night interiors and some night exteriors while the remainder was on KODAK VISION3 500T Color Negative Film 5219. Principal equipment used was an ARRI SR3 with Zeiss Super Speed lenses, a 10mm Ultra Prime and a 200mm macro. The film was completed in August and is set for both theatrical and TV distribution.
