6th February 2009

As I recover from a scorching 40 plus heatwave in Sydney and far too much time spent in air conditioned cinema’s I thought it was time I graced you with my presence once again on the new and improved Frightfest website.

The year that is 2009 is shaping up nicely on the horror front with a slew of Aussie bred chillers all at various stages of production. I’ve already discussed Triangle, Long Weekend and Daybreakers on the site but they are merely the tip of the bloody iceberg of a hopefully fabulous line up of Antipodean horror.

Presently in post production is Coffin Rock. Produced by David Lightfoot, the man who looked over Greg McLean’s Wolf Creek and Rogue, the film tells the story of a woman unable to conceive a child with her husband, despite years of trying. In a desperate and drunken mistake, she sleeps with a young stranger. Determined to prove his paternity, his intentions soon become terrifyingly psychotic and the young woman finds herself at the centre of a psychological and brutally physical battle which she must win if she is to survive and have the family she longs for.
 

May this year brings the Aussie release of Prey. I interviewed stars Natalie Bassingthwaighte and Jesse Johnson last year and both were thrilled with how the filming went but it seems now that the film’s original director Dr George Miller has removed his name from the film. It remains to be seen how this will affect the final product but the Prey website has a taster of the plot. “When six friends decided to leave the city and head for the surf, how were they to know that they were being drawn into a world of ancient curses and inescapable nightmares. Trapped, in a valley of primordial evil, these friends try to come to terms with past wrong doings but no matter how hard they try and escape, they always end up staring death in the face. Welcome to a place where the supernatural world hunts the real world. Welcome to Prey………Dreamtime is Over!”

Lake Mungo is already lined up for a US remake, despite the fact that the film is yet to have an Australian release. The film tells the story of a teenager whose apparent death sets off a series of paranormal events. Frightened by what appears to be otherworldly activity, her family discovers secrets about their daughter as well as what lurks beneath Lake Mungo. The film was shot in the now clichéd faux-documentary style so it remains to be seen if the film manages to be original or a Blair Witch clone.

More details are becoming available on Christopher Smith’s Triangle. As I‘ve mentioned on this blog the sets on the film looked fabulous and hopes are high after seeing Smith and the cast in action. The only details of the plot revealed so far appeared on the British Film Council website “When Jess hits a seagull on a drive to the local harbour; little does she know that it is a harrowing omen of things to come. She sets sail on a yacht with a group of friends and already things are not as they seem, she just can't put her finger on why. Her suspicions are heightened when the yacht hits a storm and the group is forced to board a passing ocean liner to get to safety, a ship Jess is convinced she's been on before. The ship appears deserted, the clock on board has stopped, but they are not alone… Someone is intent on hunting them down, one by one. And Jess unknowingly holds the key to end the terror.

Every year filmmakers wait with bated breath to see if they will be receiving funding from Screen Australia. This year a genre film was among the lucky few. Directed by Richard Turner and starring Jacqueline McKenzie, of Romper Stomper fame; Luv Sux with attempt that difficult beast, the horror comedy. The film is about a vampire who fathered a child with a human. Now, 17 year later, he must find his son before the boy undergoes a blood-soaked puberty in a distant hell-hole of sun, sand and savagery that his mother has kidnapped him to: Australia.

Any film described as “A balls to the wall, edgy thriller. Think Get Carter in ‘stubbies’ crossed with Tarantino.” That’s exactly what Wolf Creek director Greg McLean has said about the debut feature from Steve Kastrissios, The Horseman. Already one of eight Australian films to have secured spots at the 2009 South By Southwest Film Festival, hopes are high. The films website gives us a brief synopsis of what’s on offer. “An action-packed, multi-award winning Australian thriller that features a range of powerhouse performances in an unflinching study of grief & retribution. Explore the dark fantasies we all dream up as Christian (Peter Marshall) grieves over the suspicious death of his teenage daughter. As he travels through rural Queensland to investigate, he picks up Alice (Caroline Marohasy), an awkward young runaway and an unlikely bond develops. But as the crime is pieced together, an ugly truth is revealed and Christian spirals down a dangerous path.”

In other production news the team behind Black Water are moving from crocodiles to sharks with The Reef and the Duel clone Road Train is revving up to threaten Aussie freeways. Finally it wasn’t going to long before the dire state of the world was going to become a horror film and The Strawman promises a futuristic vision of a financially destitute world. Will this be the beginning of another wave of post apocalyptic Aussie Mad Max clones? We’ll have to wait and see?

Be lucky.
Keep watching.

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