Wolf Creek (Unrated) [HD DVD]

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I love this new genre, gross and gory and frightening. It runs close to the Hostel movies with new horrific posibilites. The great thing about these movies is that they make you feel less safe and maybe think twice when you decide to travel to a new country. Like Jaws made me feel less safe about the ocean, and I used to love the ocean.

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Wolf Creek (Unrated) [HD DVD]

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When traveling through Australia, two British chicks (sheilas), Liz and Christy, meet a moronic Aussie bloke named Ben. The three decide to take a trip to Wolf(e) Creek National Park, a remote meteorite crater in the Australian wilderness. Prior to their long trip Ben decides to get their wheels: a beat up, red wagon monstrosity costing $1500 quid. Brilliant - buy a used rust-bucket for a trek into the barren, remote outback. Ben eats soup with a fork. After their arrival at Wolf(e) Creek, with the subsequent hike being over, their P.O.S. car doesn't start. Of course it doesn't. Luckily, they meet a friendly bushman named Mick (John Jarrat).

Mick seems friendly enough, in a pedophiliac, overweight, clichéd Crocodile Dundee sort of way, sporting a harsh Australian accent, a filthy akubra, and gloriously huge mutton chops. He attempts to fix their beater, and then eventually tows it to his secluded camp: an abandoned mine site. With complete trust the three travelers, completely unaware of their surroundings, without a reliable mode of transportation, and having only known their friendly mechanic for a few hours, decide to relax and go to sleep. No worries.

It turns out they were drugged, and Mick's time in the wilderness has made him go troppo and lonely; the roos only provide so much love. Liz wakes up bound and gagged in a closet, her friends nowhere in site but experiencing presumably similar predicaments. Let the Aussie version of hillbilly torture porn begin!

For the most part it's a typical horror movie throughout, a cross between Texas Chainsaw Massacre and The Hills Have Eyes. There were a few moments when the victims did something smart, making me think, "Good onya!" Unfortunately for them, however, they revert to retarded, and the carnage begins anew. (The ridiculously bad decisions are the main negative aspect of the movie)

The filming and scenery are very beautiful at times, reminding everyone what a beautiful country Australia is, with stunning wide-angle looks at the Wolfe Creek Crater, and spectacular, multi-colored sunsets. Conversely, there are scenes with almost indie tones to them, with possible retro-horror tribute to 70s horror flicks' close-ups. The acting is pretty much average for the tearful trio, with a few good screams. Mick, however, is abso-bloodly-lutely brilliant. One moment he's sadistically cheery, and the next eerily creepy. He's a gleeful madman, laughing and taunting his prey like a child charring an ant with a magnifying glass.

With a tense buildup and an evil haze throughout, it's better than most of the garbage Hollywood steals from Japan and passes off as horror nowadays. It's definitely worthy a horror fan's viewing, and probably a good bet for casual fans.

(This review brought to you with random Aussie slang.)

Guest

Wolf Creek (Unrated) [HD DVD]

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Although you could argue that this falls into the recent spate of torture-porn films, in fact its vastly superior to all of these. Yes it follows the old pattern of young good-looking people getting into trouble, but it does it with a verve and style that is missing form say Hostel and Capture.

The main reason it works is because some time is spent developing the characters in the first half of the film. So when things start to go bad for the innocent trio you do have some sympathy with the nightmare that they find themselves in.

Another important point is that this is not a Hollywood movie and as a result it does not do what Hollywood movies do. In the last 1/3 of the film there quite a few unpleasant surprises which you wouldn't get in a Hollywood film.

It is supposed to be based on a true story, although there may have been some artistic licence. Nevertheless even if its only 50% true the events portrayed are truly nightmarish. If you are a fan of horror films you'll like this a lot, otherwise I'd advise caution!

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