Thirst (1979) & Harlequin (1980)
Released 18 May
Cult film fans will love the DVD release of two Down Under psycho-chillers produced by Antony I Ginnane – Australia’s very own Roger Corman. A shining light in the 1980s, Ginnane was a true auteur, and the only Aussie film-maker brave enough to do genre films in a period stuffed with costume dramas and historical epics. His legacy lives on in these DVD re-releases.
From director Rod Hardy (who today lenses US shows like Dollhouse and Burn Notice) comes Thirst, a contemporary vampire flick in which a cult of wealthy high-fliers farm humans for their blood. Believing fashion designer Kate (Chantal Contouri) is a descendant of the notorious Countess Bathory, the group abduct and brainwash Kate into believing in her legacy. Her only chance of escape is a kindly doctor (David Hemmings) who disagrees with the cult’s use of force.
Thirst (which has nothing to do with Park Chan Wook’s forthcoming film of the same name) is pretty slow going, with few shocks preventing you from keeping a finger on the fast-forward button. But it’s an interesting premise, with a novel use of the Aussie bush (the farms are filled with humans instead of sheep). There are also some standout scenes, including a Dame Edna Everage look-a-like pensioner sucking a young stud dry and a picnic scene that will have you thinking twice about eating chicken wings again. Will you surrender yourself to the thirst?
In Harlequin – one of the few Australian features to be shot in beautiful Perth, Western Australia – a youthful Robert Powell gives a standout performance in a chilling modern twist to the Rasputin story.
As the mysterious Gregory Wolfe, Powell miraculously cures the ailing son of rising politician Nick Rast (David Hemmings, yet again). And like the Rasputin legend, he inveigles his way into the family’s life and finally into the arms of Rast’s wife (Carmen Duncan).
This atmospheric thriller still works today despite the dodgy special effects and poverty row production design. By re-working two historical events – the miraculous curing of Tsar Nicholas II’s son by Grigori Rasputin and the disappearance in 1967 of the Australian Prime Minister Harold Holt – the thriller is in a league of its own, combining the supernatural elements of The Omen with the political intrigue of a John Grisham adaptation. A true modern classic that’s worthy of another view.
How come the Aussie make such great movies and they actually look good but the Canadian make great movies that look bad