Relay (M) – 112 minutes

A thriller centred around a fixer who negotiates deals between corrupt corporations and whistleblowers, Relay becomes more tightly wound as it reaches its climax.

Tom (Riz Ahmed) is that middleman or fixer I speak off. An IT whiz, he is a problem solver for those who can’t see any other way out.

He makes money from both the whistleblowers and the corrupt corporations, people like a battered Hoffman (Matthew Maher), whom we meet at the start of the film.

Hoffman wanted to expose corrupt practices, but after he was roughed up, he reneged and did a deal through the middleman to return documents he had taken.

Now it is the turn of Sarah Grant (Lily James) to do likewise.

The biotechnology company she worked for developed a new, genetically modified strain of wheat, but hid its cancerous side effects from the public.

She has the evidence to prove it and was keen to expose the malfeasance.

That was before she was harassed and pushed out by the firm. Now she is just desperate to regain her life.

To that end, she initially approaches a rival firm, which points her in the direction of a shady character, known to be a fixer.

Via a telephone relay service and without meeting any of his clients, Tom negotiates deals.

Until a deal is finalised, he retains a copy of any incriminating documents, after which these are destroyed.

Tom emphasises to Sarah that if she doesn’t follow his instructions to the letter any potential deal is off the table and he walks away.

At the same time, led by Dawson (Sam Worthington), Sarah is being followed by a hit squad whose job is to intimidate her and secure the documents.

While Tom appears to have the operatives’ measure, a misstep by Sarah changes the dynamic and suddenly her life is in danger.

By then, Tom has built an affinity with her (they both appear to be loners and lonely), so he breaks his normal protocol, with devastating consequences.

With its slow but deliberate build up, Relay drew me in to its cat and mouse game. I found it intriguing.

Riz Ahmed is impressive as Tom, a man who acts with great caution and takes the time to cover his tracks.

We find out why Tom is the way he is (in other words, what prompted him to do what he does) a significant way into the movie.

His dialogue is kept to a minimum, with most of the focus on his actions.

He works in the shadows, emotionally removed from his clients. For him, it appears to be all about the process.

As Sarah, Lily James is his antithesis – emotionally fraught – and she is mighty convincing at displaying her character’s vulnerability.

It is she who works her way into Tom’s life in a way he didn’t expect.

And then we have the menacing persona of Sam Worthington as Dawson, with a small team of mercenaries around him.

Like Tom, he is deliberative in his actions, ready to strike, waiting for an in.

Written by Justin Piasecki, the screenplay was originally titled The Broker and featured on The Black List of most liked unproduced screenplays.

The visuals by cinematographer Giles Nuttgens are arresting, successfully contrasting the all but derelict with a big city vibe.

Directed by David Mackenzie (Hell or High Water), Relay is engaging, suspenseful and entertaining, building momentum to an explosive conclusion.

Rated M, it scores an 8 out of 10.