31 North 62 East

Mainstream political cinema may have lost its way in recent years, but the battle is not lost yet. From indie footsoldiers Tristan and Leofwine Loraine, this edgy political thriller places the British PM (John Rhys-Davies) as the archetypal villain who sells out an SAS unit in order to secure a multi-billion-pound arms deal and thus his re-election. Not so much anti-war as it is anti-government, this is a film unafraid to confront the decisions made by the powers that be. This is fiction, however, and as such there is no patent partisanship on show. Such meticulous fence-sitting (even the minister’s ties are neutral) means that the story stays fresh without being overly preachy. Charging boldly into battle, 31 North 62 East manages to conquer its low-budget shortcomings, emerging bruised, battered but ultimately triumphant.

Adam Woodward