Writer: Liam Alexandru
Directors: Charles Lomas and John Pickett
Inspired by Pinter, Late Night Fish by Shipwreck Productions is a short and absurd take on the gangster film. Two English men come to a lake to dispose of a body, concealed in a body bag, but their heads are full of American movies like The Godfather and Scarface. Can Tony and Michael emulate their heroes?
Probably not. They aren’t the most efficient gangsters. And they don’t seem particularly hard. Michael keeps sipping from a hip flask. Tony keeps puffing on his vape. Both are nervous about the job in hand. The man in the bag is heavy and they still have to attach weights to his feet. And despite their initial declarations, they know little about gangster films especially Tony who thinks that a horse’s hoof turns up in a bed in The Godfather and who can’t tell the Krays apart.
At first, it seems as if the whole set-up is a ploy by writer Liam Alexandru to examine the film genre and give his characters some quotes to act out in Marlon Brando voices, but slowly a story emerges. When Michael goes to find a boat, Tony talks to someone through a phone that has been secreted on the quay. While Late Night Fish is primarily a comedy, the hint of a double-crossing adds a nice edge to the play. Their banter is now underscored by doubt.
Michael is the senior gangster in the pairing and Edward Loboda gives him a sense of superiority that is mixed through with weariness, his stint in the police force affording him experience on both sides of criminal activity. In his blue Armani suit, Michael thinks he’s in charge. Alexandru plays Tony almost like a rookie gangster but an air of mystery surrounds him and perhaps his guilelessness is a disguise.
At only 35 minutes, Alexandru has referred to his play as a ‘show between shows’ and while Late Night Fish works with its short running time, there is the scope to extend it. For a fringe show there is quite an elaborate set including a blow-up dingy and a pontoon made of wooden crates and with this Shipwreck creates a clear sense of location and the actors end up using every inch of the Hen and Chickens stage.
The end, with its allusions to Reservoir Dogs, a film that Michael resolutely asserts is not a gangster film, comes like a punch line, and its ingeniousness only leaves the audience wanting more. With a few laugh-out moments, Late Night Fish is the perfect fringe show.
Runs at The Canal Cafe Theatre from 17-19 August 2022
The Camden Fringe runs from 1-28 August 2022
