'Rose of Nevada' Review: An incredibly strange English arthouse film
Published on HivePostify by @namiks · Sun Aug 02 2026
I've never been much of a fan of UK cinema, and it's something I've mentioned quite a bit throughout the years here on Hive. But sometimes something appears before me that captures my curiosity enough for me to give it a chance. And this time it's Rose of Nevada, a film shot entirely on 16mm film and with a razor thin cast, though two of which are relatively well known. One being Callum Turner who is set to play Case in the upcoming Neuromancer television series for Apple TV, and the other being George MacKay who many would recognise from his role in 1917 alongside cinematographer Roger Deakins. These are two actors that are starting to break through the ice, and I think this little arthouse film is evidence that the two certainly have quite a bit of skill.
I've never heard of Mark Jenkin before, but he's the director here. And there's certainly a vision to behold. As mentioned, shot on 16mm film, this is a very textural, very depressing look at the struggles of coastal life but with a weird twist. Two men stuck in the economic stagnation of coastal rural life find themselves seeking work and take up an offer to become fisherman, accompanying a sailor out to sea for a few days. Some strange hints beforehand setup the narrative of two previous missing fisherman that never returned home. As the two join the sailor and head out to sea, strange events unfold that have them returning to the land with everyone under the impression that these two men are the missing men that have returned. With them having been sent back in time.
This is a really unique story for English cinema. Arthouse, dramatic, and a bit of science fiction within. Though the most evident of genres certainly is the display of its arthouse style. It loves its up close perspectives, the ambient music, the fixed camera angles and the tighter aspect ratio that have the actors stuck within frame, often fixated on their expressions as they find themselves caught up in the struggles of everyday life. The film loves to show texture, which is of course amplified by that 16mm film stock. The grain adds to the close up shots of rustic fishing life. The decay and build up over time, and of course time being a much larger theme within this narrative. It's shot absolutely beautifully, even if it does have some elements of horror and oddities to it in its style.
Rose of Nevada certainly isn't for everyone, and despite it being a smaller looking film, shooting on film itself is a rather expensive process in the UK. The film was carried largely by a large 1M GBP injection from the British Film Institute, but even so, on such a thin budget it really manages to do a lot.
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