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dean_martin
03-28-2011, 01:25 PM
I finally watched 2 movies that have been waiting in line for a while always passed over for something else or loaded in the machine too late at night for me to stay awake.

Long Weekend - Australia (1978). This is described in various places on the web as a horror movie, but I don't think that it is. A city/suburb dwelling couple go on a holiday weekend camping trip apparently to try to save their marriage though it seems to be beyond repair. What follows is a clash with Nature. Neither the husband nor the wife are sympathetic characters. Even though the dialogue is somewhat sparse we learn a lot about them through their actions and words as the film progresses. I got the feeling early on that Nature would get them, but it wasn't as much Nature as Karma. In general, I would describe this as an Australian art film along the same line as Peter Weir's Picnic at Hanging Rock. (You know, the good stuff before Crocodile Dundee came along.) If you're looking for a fun, cheesy "animal attack" flick look elsewhere. This film takes itself seriously. The shots of the Australian wilderness are wonderful and Nature is developed as a character. You can feel it closing in as you watch but our two humans didn't "feel" it until it's too late. I have to hand it to the filmmakers. This film is more complex than "green politics" propaganda and in even in that regard it may have been ahead of its time. It drags in some places, the animal effects are a little shaky in places and the attempt to convey the husband's paranoia close to the end is a little off, but otherwise it's a film that makes you think afterwards. (If it didn't, I wouldn't be saying much about it today.) One other thing that was a little unusual for me is that I found myself wanting to talk out loud to the characters.

The Tripper (2006) - David Arquette's directorial debut (not sure if he's directed anything since). I picked this up at my local Movie Gallery's going-out-of-business sale. I intentionally didn't read anything about it on the web. All I knew going in is that it had Paul Reubens in it. That was enough for me to give it a try. This is a schlock slasher pic with bizarre political overtones. Yes, it's overtly political but for me the politics did not detract from the fun. A group of young druggies head to a music fest in the forest near a small town. Honestly, I didn't know we still had such old growth timber in this country. I haven't checked to see where it's filmed but it must've been filmed in a nature preserve or national forest. Anyhow, the slasher plot is rather predictable but there are some new twists. I can see this as a cult classic b-movie down the road. Trippy drug scenes and maniac killers usually help achieve that status. You'll recognize many of the actors. Paul Reubens doesn't have a huge part, but he doesn't disappoint either. Oh, and the band Fishbone is in it too!! FUNK IT UP FISHBONE!!!!