Alcoholic screenwriter Sam (Andrew Lee Potts) is a man under pressure. Struggling with a deadline and at risk of having to pay back an advance he's already spent, his day goes from bad to worse when he is beset by a series of calamitous events, worsening his already precarious situation. Following a missing wallet and a series of apparent break-ins, it seems as though someone has it in for the misanthropic writer.

Drowning his sorrows in a local bar, he meets Ileana (Amber Doig-Thorne) during a chance encounter. As the pair share a drink, a game of Never Have I Ever is proposed (what is this, my university days?). Well, it's better than truth or dare, low-budget cinema's usual go-to when it comes to drinking games gone awry.

As Sam, the former Primeval star gives good grump. Much of the film is predicated on his performance, and he makes for an enjoyably miserly figure, even if Never Have I Ever does lean into the tortured artist / alcoholic writer cliches a little too hard. Directed by Damon Rickard and written by him, Potts and Mitch Bain, this slow-burn thriller keeps its audience guessing, gradually teasing at the cause of Sam's torment. All of this is leading to the tiitular game of Never Have I Ever, of course, but it takes its time in getting there, slowly cranking up the tension.

Too slowly? Perhaps, at times. Sam's secret, one that reaches back to his youth and still has implications today, is not an obvious one, but nor is it so mind-blowing as to make what has transpired here feel terribly memorable. The film's low budget betrays itself in lengthier scenes consisting of conversations between less accomplished performers. It's a less outlandish Tales of the Unexpected or more subdued Inside No.9 episode. It's a well-structured game of secrets and lies, but rarely does it ever truly surprise.