THE HAUNTING OF THE MURDER HOUSE

Stars: Kellan Rudnicki, Tyler Miller, Sarah Tyson, Dylane DeVane, Walter Braithwaite and Brent Downs.
Writers: Brendan Rudnicki and Kellan Rudnicki
Director: Brendan Rudnicki

Rating: ★ ★ ½

From the SEO-friendly title (which sounds like a Simpsons Halloween episode) to its outfitting of a supportive relative’s home as its key location, The Rudnicki Brother’s no-budget mash-up of found-footage tropes and slasher beats is made for the scroll-friendly depths of Roku or Tubi, those modern streaming equivalents of the weekly VHS rental shelf. And like the cheesy, underlit splatterfests that dwelled on those shelves of yore, The Haunting of the Murder House will provide giggles, gasps and groans in equal measure.

The hosts of YouTube paranormal show ‘The Otherside’, Harper (Sarah Tyson) and Kai (Tyler Miller) find their online popularity on the decline. So, with reluctant cameraman Kel (Kellan Rudnicki) along for the ride, they decide to live-stream an 8-hour lock-in at the site of a legendarily brutal crime, during which a grotesquely-masked killer clown (here we go…) slashed and stabbed his way to infamy. Now, with OB-van tech Dylan (Dylan DeVane) calling the shots, the three settle in for a night of jump scares and swearing at each other.

(A quick aside - if you get a sense of deja vu from that synopsis, you may have seen The Rudnicki’s 2019 opus, The Murder at the Suicide House, in which three ghost-hunting YouTubers spend a night at the titular estate to get the material they need to boost the popularity of their channel.)

No haunted house cliche is left unturned, with ouija boards, hidden rooms, salted pentagrams, demonic possession and night-vision cameras all getting raked over the cinematic coals. Most effectively utilised, of course, is the image and presence of ol’ bloodthirsty Bozo himself; his introduction, in which he faces off against an increasingly jittery cop (Brent Downs), is legitimately scary. A combination of flashy lighting and a punchy score makes the clown’s first reveal to the YouTubers a genuinely chilling few moments. Also shocking are the occasional leaps from shadowy atmospherics to giallo-esque gore.

And that’s the take-away after 80 minutes of The Haunting at the Murder House - much of it actually works. There will be snarky web-critics who want to tear it down (some sketchy acting and loopy plotting give them an in), but for a calling card film that indicates the creatives have a handle on filmmaking technique and storytelling craft, it is a win for the Rudnicki siblings. Their production outfit DBS Films is favouring quantity over quality at this stage (they’ve banked seven low-budgeters since 2019), but one senses there will be a time soon when that equation balances out.

WHAT GOES AROUND

Stars: Catherine Morvell, Jesse Bouma, Gabrielle Pearson, Charles Jazz Terrier, Taylor Pearce, Aly Zhang, Maximilian Johnson and Ace Whitman.
Writer/Director: Sam Hamilton.

Currently available globally via Prime Video, Genflix and Vimeo on Demand.

Rating: ★ ★ ★

The cinematic DNA of ageing ensemble shockers Scream (1996) and I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997) is coursing through the bloody veins of Sam Hamilton’s What Goes Around. Hinting at the cyclical nature of the slasher movie fad from the title on down, this splattery, silly but undeniably entertaining reworking of shopworn stalk-&-stab tropes will wear some deep critical cuts but also prove a blast for audiences for whom the ‘90s is that distant decade in which their parents got married.

Aiming for a demographic smart enough to know its horror movie references but not so gratingly ironic as to dismiss them outright, Hamilton’s feature directing debut talks the talk to today’s 20-somethings - his cast drink a lot of coffee (and milkshakes), text all the time, converse (and dance) awkwardly at parties. Out front is Erin Macneil (the terrific Catherine Morvell, recalling Emily Blunt by way of Kerry Armstrong; pictured, top), a socially withdrawn film-school student who remains in touch with her bff, Rachel (Gabrielle Pearson). 

The ol’ high-school gang are also around, including tart-mouth stirrer Marnie (Ace Whitman), upwardly-mobile jerk Cameron (Charles Jazz Terrier), his doormat gf Cara (Aly Chang), and support players Jake (Taylor Pearce) and Tom (Maximilian Johnson), for whom these sort of movies never end particularly well.

Erin’s documentary-class crush is Alex Harrison (Jesse Bouma; pictured, above), the narrative’s ‘Skeet Ulrich’-type, who somewhat suspiciously leaves his laptop right where Erin can find it. Find it she does, and soon spying upon his private emails is she. Things turn ugly when Erin opens an email from ‘Snuff Boy’, and a brutal killing-video unfolds before her disbelieving eyes. As with even the best of this genre (throw in Urban Legend, Halloween H20, The Faculty, all the Scream and Summer sequels), the plot moves forward based upon one or more characters making bad choices; here, Erin ignores said snuff footage and allows herself to be wooed by Alex. 

As the bodies pile up and the group’s backstory comes into focus, Hamilton’s skill at moving his story along at a clip (the pic is a thankfully tight 78 mins) is appreciated; implausibilities are pushed aside and the cool stuff that slasher fans pine for moves centre-stage. The kills are staged with efficiency and build with intensity; come the final frames, nail-guns and hacksaws feel about right.

Bring a few grains of salt. The gruesome murders all take place in a middle-class Australian suburb with seemingly no police force; despite several bloody deaths amongst their core group and a cyber-crime component which places it under federal jurisdiction, no character is ever interrogated or seeks counselling. Things move pretty fast in slasher movies, rarely allowing for such affectations as mourning or police procedural work.

Not that the lack of such subtleties proves an anchor for What Goes Around, as Hamilton knows what makes the genre tick. The balance of charismatic performers, a bloody bodycount and the occasional wink to the audience in service of the mid-level mystery plot is what rejuvenated the slice-&-dice romp 25 years ago, and may do again.

What Goes Around | Official Trailer from Bounty Films on Vimeo.

FAGS IN THE FAST LANE

Stars: Chris Asimos, Matt Jones, Oliver Bell, Sasha Cuha, King Khan, Aimee Nichols, Puggsley Buzzard, Luke Clayson, Justine Jones, El Vez, The GoGo Goddesses and Kitten Natividad. Narrated by Tex Perkins.
Writers: Josh Sinbad Collins and Steven G Michael.
Director: Josh Sinbad Collins.

WORLD PREMIERE: June 27 at The Astor Theatre, St Kilda.

Rating: 4/5

Primed to fearlessly thrust its phallic fixation into the faces of wildly enthusiastic midnight-movie crowds the world over, Fags in The Fast Lane is a terrifically tawdry, gloriously distasteful celebration of giggly homoeroticism and punkish shock tactics. That it also works well as a bold statement in favour of personal expression and acceptance feels like an added bonus, given its main aim is clearly to entertain and disgust, usually in that order.

Although it defies categorization at every turn, the DNA of director Josh Sinbad Collins’ comedy/musical/splatter/soft-core romp would include the cult classic Flesh Gordon and the lo-fi genius of Mike and George Kuchar. Collins has drawn upon edgy pop culture influences (the ‘Sin City’-inspired opening, for example) to craft a super-hero/revenge narrative about a goofy he-man vigilante named Sir Beauregard, aka The Cockslinger, played by Chris Asimos. The actor is the perfect central figure to bring Collins’ frantic vision to life, his appearance not unlike a muscle-bound Sacha Baron Cohen (comic timing intact).

With a trusty ensemble that includes sidekick Reginald Lumpton (the imposing Matt Jones), converted homophobe Squirt (Oliver Bell) and Persian princess, Salome (lithesome beauty Sasha Cuha), Beau sets off after the ‘Grotesque Burlesque’ troupe The Chompers, led by Wanda the Giantess (Aimee Nichols), whose raid upon the GILF Pleasure Palace has snared them the priceless jewels of madam and Beau’s mother, Kitten (legendary B-queen, Kitten Natividad, in her heyday the muse of sleaze maestro Russ Meyer).

The quest allows for the bawdy band to visit the Bollywood-themed den of iniquity, The Bang Galore, where they meet the distraught Hijra (Indian rock legend King Khan), who joins the gang hoping to recover his stolen Golden Cock, a metallic dildo with supernatural powers. The journey takes them via a swamp, populated by penile-shaped flora and fauna, and the Thunderdome-like ‘Freaky Town’, where The Cockslinger’s gang and The Chompers finally face off.

Collins brings a dazzling sense of invention to the design work on the Fags in The Fast Lane, employing everything from handcrafted puppetry and miniature work to slick animation and desktop effects enhancement. The production matches the OTT enthusiasm of the acting troupe with set dressing and costuming (courtesy of the director’s partner, Barbara ‘Blaze’ Collins) that references tiki culture, Aztec influences, drag queen excess and good ol’ B-movie cheese’n’sleaze.

The all-or-nothing energy of Fags in The Fast Lane is no surprise given the crew list features some of Melbourne underground cinema’s high-profile names, amongst them DOP Stu Simpson (director of El Monstro Del Mar and Chocolate Strawberry Vanilla); script editor Lee Gambin (author and head of the popular Cinemaniacs collective); and, actor Glenn Maynard (…Vanilla; Mondo Yakuza). The shoot also represents a fitting farewell for Collins’ now-shuttered nightclub The LuWOW, which served as an ideal backdrop for several of the scripts vividly imagined settings.

Certain to become a must-own for student digs across Australia is a soundtrack that includes The Mummies, Hot Wings, Sugar Fed Leopards and The Seven Ups; music cred is upped even further with the involvement of TheCruel Sea frontman Tex Perkins, who narrates The Cockslinger’s journey.

ROUGH STUFF

Stars: Gareth Rickards, Vincent Andriano, Sam Glissan, Hayley Sullivan, Katie Garfield, Jamie Kristian, Adam Horner, Bobby Babin and Ernie Dingo.
Writer/Director: Jonathan Adams

Rating: 3.5/5

A raucous, rambling off-road romp that plays unashamedly broad and loud, director Jonathan Adams makes up for a complete disregard for subtlety by delivering a ballsy, sweary celebration of all things alpha-Aussie in his debut effort, the appropriately titled Rough Stuff. Both soft-hearted and tough-as-nails, the ladish adventure so adores its depiction of the ‘Australian Male’, it may stir patriotic yearnings for the rugged bushman of local cinematic lore and emerge as a box office bloke-buster.

From the film’s first images – a kookaburra, a thorny lizard, a vast dusty expanse about to be ravaged by a wild 4WD ‘bush bash’ – Adams and his DOP Jack Crombie make no bones about the sort of tale they are going to tell. Nor do they flinch in referencing influences from our century-old silver screen history. Intentional or otherwise, nods can be found to everything from Crocodile Dundee and Wolf Creek to The Chain Reaction and Ground Zero in Adams’ patchwork plotting, suggesting Rough Stuff is as much a homage to our film heritage as it is a love letter to the land.

Towering over the film in a performance as big as Australia itself is leading man Gareth Rickards, a barrel-chested and naturally gifted screen presence who recalls the square-jawed appeal of past Antipodean 'real men' like Andrew Clarke and Errol Flynn. Rickards plays ‘Buzz’, a contemporary incarnation of colonial bush-lifers known as ‘Rovers’, a man who has dedicated his life to searching for a mythical deposit called Stray’s Gold, his best mate Abe (Vincent Adriano) by his side. When an eco-activist documentary crew entice Buzz and Abe (alongside Sam Glissan’s trusty mechanic Scraps) to guide them through treacherous bushland with a map to the legendary mother lode, the duo reluctantly sign on.

Villains in blue-collar adventures such as Rough Stuff can be spotted a bush mile away. Pony-tailed, clean-shaven vegan Eric (Jamie Kristian) and snooty offsider Tom (Adam Horner) have ulterior motives which have little to do with a gold strike; they have coerced an out-of-her-depth Tori (a particularly fine Hayley Sullivan) to tag along and teach her mining magnate father Daniel Madsen (Bob Babin) a lesson in green terrorism. Not in on the ruse, spunky documentarian Skye (Katie Garfield) finds herself caught up in the increasingly dangerous events.

Adams’ deftly sets up a strong set of principal characters, exhibiting natural skills as a storyteller, before a cumbersome third act stalls the momentum. Throw in a mysterious, menacing vigilante figure called ‘The Ranger’ who appears intermittently and it becomes increasingly evident that not all story strands and character arcs are going to gel. International territories beckon, given the flavoursome Aussie imagery and Rickards’ broad-shouldered He-man hero, though sales agents are likely to demand some judicious trimming of the 119 minute running time.

Shortcomings aside, Rough Stuff proves an always engaging, rousing tale that celebrates the spirit of our bush folk without a hint of irony. It is not a film for the ‘cultural cringe’ crowd, that elitist niche who resent any depiction of our population as descendants of rough’n’tumble rural folk. But nor is it meant for them. In one of the most impressive calling card pics in recent memory, Jonathan Adams has rediscovered and contemporised the charms of a terrific bush yarn.

THIS PAPIER MACHE BOULDER IS ACTUALLY REALLY HEAVY

Stars: Christian Nicolson, Sez Niederer, Daniel Pujol, Lewis Roscoe, Joseph Wycoff, Tansy Hayden and Jarred Tito.
Writers: Andrew Beszant and Christian Nicolson.
Director: Christian Nicolson.

Rating: 3/5

Playing sweet and silly while keeping irony in check is one of the many endearing traits of multi-hyphenate Christian Nicolson’s fan-boy movie-gasm, This Giant Papier Mache Boulder is Actually Really Heavy. The Auckland-based writer-director’s passion project is roughhewn but undeniably crowdpleasing, deriving some big laughs from a barrage of references that draw upon the two great periods of popular science fiction entertainment –the B-movie cheapies of the 1950s and the post-Star Wars boom of the 1980s.

Working with co-scripter Andrew Beszant and exhibiting an unwavering commitment to improvised energy, the premise stems from Nicolson’s deep understanding and clear affection for such properties as Blakes 7, Doctor Who, Battlestar Galactica, Red Dwarf and Star Trek (whose fan base are already nodding knowingly at the title); large dollops of comedic inspiration come from the likes of Monty Python, the Simon Pegg series Spaced and, in one nutty nod, The Benny Hill Show. Low- to no-budget constraints clearly posed zero concern for the cast and crew, who commit to their director’s enthusiastically loopy vision regardless of wobbly sets, home-stitched costuming and paddocks-as-planets location shoots.

Nicholson stars as Tom, the almost-cool one in a mismatched trio alongside schlubby eye-roller Gavin (Lewis Roscoe) and sci-fi geek Jeffery (Daniel Pujol). Reluctantly roped into a day at the mini-con ‘Quest Fest’, they are drawn to a screening of the schlocky space-opera, Space Warriors in Space. With barely a paragraph of cumbersome exposition, the three are zapped into the film, where Jeffery morphs into the fictitious Captain Kasimir, the trio put offside the evil galactic battle lord Froth (Joseph Wycoff, very funny) and Tom fosters affections for the feisty heroine Emmanor (Sez Niederer). Developments involving giant lizards, leery bikini-clad Amazons, a muppet and tribesmen with a Groot-like economy for words add to the overall air of free-for-all lunacy.

The meta-friendly ‘trapped-in-a-movie’ device allows for lots of knowing satire, utilisation of well-worn tropes and examination of the fan-to-film dynamic. Unlike the melancholy romanticism of Woody Allen’s The Purple Rose of Cairo or smart social commentary of Gary Ross’ Pleasantville, Nicolson uses the structure to play for broad laughs, as Peter Hyams did in the 1992 cult item Stay Tuned, which saw John Ritter and Pam Dawber cast into a cable TV nightmare. The other clear inspiration is Dean Parisot’s 1999 hit Galaxy Quest; less obviously, due to it barely having seen a release outside of the UK, is Alan Donohoe’s Star Wars fan-pic, I Have a Bad Feeling About This, which recounts the odyssey of two Lucas-obsessed lads determined to catch a screening of the original trilogy.

In hindsight, Nicolson may have handed his post-production hyphen over to a fresh pair of eyes; at 112 minutes, the whimsy is not always maintained and the film could do with a tight trim. But one can’t begrudge Nicolson and his cast and crew the urge to put all they shot on-screen for all to see; the sense that every set-up was forged with passion and persistence imbues this giggly, goofy and genuinely likable genre farce.

This Giant Papier Mache Boulder is Actually Really Heavy begins an exclusive New Zealand screening season on September 14 in Auckland. Full screening and ticketing information on the film’s official website.