BLOODY BIRTHDAY

Recently had a first-time viewing of this low-budget, semi-obscure horror flick from 1981. I was expecting a generic slasher, but it is more of a killer kids movie, about two boys and a girl who were all born during a solar eclipse, and ten years later run rampant around their town, killing off people for seemingly no other reason than the fun of it. Lots of great, crazy fun and a few creepy moments, and Elizabeth Hoy is certainly well cast as the evil little girl, she certainly has a perfect face to portray tiny tot terror. It's very silly, and the cops (and adults) in this town must be amongst the dumbest ever depicted on celluloid, but there's plenty of over-the-top hijinks and some gore, not to mention scenes of ten-year-old boys peeking through a hole in the wardrobe to perv on a naked Julie Brown. Started watching this primarily as research for a piece on Susan Strasberg that I am currently writing, sadly Susan's character doesn't last too long, but the entertainment certainly doesn't stop with her demise. BLOODY BIRTHDAY is on Blu-ray (from Arrow) but also available to watch on Tubi.

THE DRY

Tonight's movie. Been waiting for a chance to watch this 2020 Australian thriller, and it was certainly worth it. It's a slow-burn, but it absolutely succeeds in seducing you into its story, its characters, and its mystery. Eric Bana is probably the best he has been since he played Chopper, cast here as a big city cop who returns to his home country town, now parched by drought, to investigate the apparent murder/suicide involving his childhood friend. At the same time, he needs to confront a secret of his own, which has been tormenting him for decades. I haven't read Jane Harper's 2016 book that the film is adapted from, and I think that certainly helped the impact it had on me. The less you know about the plot going in, the better. Having now seen the movie, I am intrigued enough to seek out the novel. The locations are as much a central character in the film as anything else, Stefan Duscio's camera capturing just the right angles and glints of sunlight reflecting off tin to make the harsh, bone dry environment (it was filmed in rural Melbourne, around the Horsham area).