‘Wasteman’ Review: David Jonsson and Tom Blyth Add Character to a Brawny but Familiar Prison Drama

Home Film Reviews Apr 16, 2026 8:49pm PT ‘Wasteman’ Review: David Jonsson and Tom Blyth Add Character to a Brawny but Familiar Prison Drama The stars bring forlorn and feral energy, respectively, to Cal McMau's BAFTA-nominated debut feature, which is violently jolting if never exactly surprising. By Guy Lodge Plus Icon Guy Lodge Film Critic @guylodge Latest ‘Wasteman’ Review: David Jonsson and Tom Blyth Add Character to a Brawny but Familiar Prison Drama 8 minutes ago ‘Lee Cronin’s The Mummy’ Review: Long, Lavishly Gory Horror Ride Is Loud Enough to Wake the Undead 15 hours ago ‘Balls Up’ Review: Ugly Americans Face the Wrath of Brazil in a Disposable Comic Jaunt for Mark Wahlberg and Paul Walter Hauser 2 days ago See All James A. Demetriou British actor David Jonsson is only five films into his career, but you’d already know his gaze anywhere: Even in a film as spry and bright as the 2023 romcom “Rye Lane,” those crinkly, softly drooping eyes bring an air of old-soul melancholy to proceedings. But they’ve never borne quite as much sorrow as they do in “Wasteman,” a coolly brutal prison drama that follows a pretty rusty narrative template — hardened inmate on the brink of parole struggles to stay on the straight and narrow — but finds more interest in the dueling masculine energies of its two principal stars. If Jonsson, as the nearly-free man in question, is all guarded regret and head-down resilience, Tom Blyth is his lethal opposite number: As a near-feral cellmate from hell, he’s the disruptive force that gives an otherwise predictable film a spark of erratic danger. Related Stories Cannes' Critics Week Unveils 2026 Lineup, Kicking Off With California-Set Animated Feature 'In Waves'