Two friends, Liz (Cassandra Magrath) and Kristy (Kestie Morassi) are traveling by the west coast of Australia. On their journey (made up of constant car travel) they are accompanied by a local friend, Ben (Nathan Phillips)who is actually smitten with Liz.
The group is headed to the place called Wolf Creek: an area located in the National Park, the result of the impact of a huge meteorite.
The fascinating crater, witness to the crowning romance between Liz and Ben, soon turns out to be an unhappy place: the car, in fact, shows no signs of life.
The three boys were left stranded, lost in the vast area devoid of transit...As luck would have it, a passing truck driver offered to assist...
But things, overnight, will take the turn of a nightmare....
An Australian horror film is quite rare.
What's more, here we are dealing with an excellent specimen, which enjoys particularly accurate photography and offers a panoramic view (supported by the structure of the locations) with a strong visual impact.
The film is divided into two parts: a first half of exploration and travel, on the wave of fun, and a second half that is exactly opposite, with the characters locked up in a dingy shed and victim of the madness (with no return) of a cynical and ruthless torturer.
Although the plot is still the same, here we are faced with good staging, supported by the steadfast direction of Greg McLean (at work in 2006 on Rogue, a forthcoming international release) who also signs the screenplay.
And it is the latter that, playing on the surprise factor, catches the viewer in the stomach, reserving two unexpected final twists that fully achieve their effective goal thanks in part to the excellent performance given by the performers.
The film is said to be inspired by real data, and brings in some figures on the people who, annually, disappear in Australia: whatever the case may be, the model of reference seems to be (rather than the chronicle) the usual Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
The level of gore is splatter and metered, but effective and disturbing when it makes an appearance.
Review by Undying1
