Mess with nature and nature will mess with you right back: that's the message of Colin Eggleston's impressive Australian 70s chiller, Long Weekend.
An estranged suburban couple, Peter and Marcia, on a camping holiday at a remote beach, upset the local wildlife with their inconsiderate attitude towards the environment. Peter litters the beauty spot with beer bottles, shoots up the place with his rifle, and chops at random trees with his axe; Marcia, recovering from an abortion (the result of an adulterous affair) vents her frustration and anger by killing the insect life and destroying an eagle's egg. The local wildlife decides enough is enough, and exacts revenge.
This wonderfully eerie and incredibly atmospheric movie may be a little heavy handed with its ecological message at times, but the positives far outweigh the negatives. A nifty supernatural slant sees the couple unable to escape from their remote location, travelling in circles and forever returning to the same spot (an idea echoed in later films, The Blair Witch Project and The Evil Dead II), whilst a sea creature killed by Peter refuses to stay put, creeping ever closer to the couple's encampment.
The film's leads, John Hargreaves and Briony Behets, give convincing performances as an embittered married couple who are reaching the inevitable end of their relationship, yet who still cling on to each other rather than risking facing the unknown apart. Hargreaves makes his character believably arrogant and inconsiderate, whilst Behets' Marcia is a real cow: selfish, bitchy and totally unlikeable.
Brilliant cinematography (every frame is beautiful to behold) and a really creepy soundtrack (both the music and the wailing animal noises) add to the movie's power to unsettle the viewer.
Some may find the story a little too leisurely in its unfoldingthis is a real slow burner that doesn't rush thingsbut it is worth hanging in there, particularly for the great 'surprise' ending that finishes the movie perfectly.
An estranged suburban couple, Peter and Marcia, on a camping holiday at a remote beach, upset the local wildlife with their inconsiderate attitude towards the environment. Peter litters the beauty spot with beer bottles, shoots up the place with his rifle, and chops at random trees with his axe; Marcia, recovering from an abortion (the result of an adulterous affair) vents her frustration and anger by killing the insect life and destroying an eagle's egg. The local wildlife decides enough is enough, and exacts revenge.
This wonderfully eerie and incredibly atmospheric movie may be a little heavy handed with its ecological message at times, but the positives far outweigh the negatives. A nifty supernatural slant sees the couple unable to escape from their remote location, travelling in circles and forever returning to the same spot (an idea echoed in later films, The Blair Witch Project and The Evil Dead II), whilst a sea creature killed by Peter refuses to stay put, creeping ever closer to the couple's encampment.
The film's leads, John Hargreaves and Briony Behets, give convincing performances as an embittered married couple who are reaching the inevitable end of their relationship, yet who still cling on to each other rather than risking facing the unknown apart. Hargreaves makes his character believably arrogant and inconsiderate, whilst Behets' Marcia is a real cow: selfish, bitchy and totally unlikeable.
Brilliant cinematography (every frame is beautiful to behold) and a really creepy soundtrack (both the music and the wailing animal noises) add to the movie's power to unsettle the viewer.
Some may find the story a little too leisurely in its unfoldingthis is a real slow burner that doesn't rush thingsbut it is worth hanging in there, particularly for the great 'surprise' ending that finishes the movie perfectly.