Cashback (15)

Sean Ellis turns his 18-minute, Oscar-nominated short into a feature length film.

The leads are the same: Glasgow's Sean Biggerstaff as the sensitive youth floored by the loss of his first love, and Emilia Fox as the girl who helps him to his feet again.

The original story of an art student's attempt to salve a broken heart through all-night shelf stacking at Sainsbury's was quirky and novel.

Though Ellis has managed to retain much of its charm, there's a sense of ideas and characters being stretched further than they can comfortably bear.

The overwhelming reaction to the release of this charming romantic comedy ought to be "It’s about time".

The film was made two years ago, and has attracted rave reviews and done well all over Europe, as well as opening the Glasgow Film Festival last year – but only now does it get a UK release.

And all of this for a film that was actually nominated for an Oscar!

Sean Ellis’s film started life as a short drama about a young man, played by Sean Biggerstaff, passing his time on the night shift at a local supermarket.

This feature version bookends that plot with an explanation of how he came to be there – he was dumped by his girlfriend – and what happens next, when he falls for checkout girl Emilia Fox.

Ellis’s stylish direction and the camera trickery which allows Biggerstaff to make time stand still to make his shift pass more easily, make Cashback inventive and constantly diverting.

However the film’s strength lies in the performances of Biggerstaff and Fox, who are entirely convincing and believable. Unlike most couples in contemporary romantic comedies not only do you want these two to be together, you’ll believe they deserve to be together.