Férias Selvagens

Other comments here allude to fake reviews by marketing or crew persons hyping the film out of proportion. This sometimes is used to attract international sales. My review is not one of those. If you want to amuse yourself by reading deliberately hoaxed reviews have a look at LIQUID BRIDGE, THE PACT, SUMMER CITY and all the films produced or directed by Phil Avalon. You will find they are all rave reviews for hilariously awful amateurish failures. Just cross connect any film with his name on them and get set for a night of uproarious laughter. Also, the new release WOLF CREEK will be the next title to get cast and crew rave reviews all out of proportion to its lame sad reality. Anyway.......LOST THINGS seems like a first feature by a new Australian film maker who just might go on to better things. And I do not mean SWIMFAN 2. One SWIMFAN was bad enough. LOST THINGS however, is a daylight horror film - a very difficult genre of film to get right. This one does, first go. Viewers might be readily assisted by first seeing classics like THE INNOCENTS and DEAD OF NIGHT to get a sense of the eerie outdoor chills this neat low budget thriller has to offer. In the 70s there was a horror cycle of pix in Australia and two well made examples LOST THINGS subconsciously owes a lot of imagery and style to are THE LONG WEEKEND with John Hargreaves, also set on a scary beach, and SUMMERFIELD which was a sunny setting for deadly menace. I would also pointer the truly chilling British film THE WICKER MAN to add a clear sense of what LOST THINGS has to offer. This new Australian pic seems made for almost nothing and looks to be shot on bleached 16mm, enlarged for a welcome cinema release. There are some mistakes in the production, some clunky editing, some wobbly acting moments, and it overcomes all of them. Older teens would love this film and it offers some real scares and major mind games. Well done! Whoever you are. An un necessary gruesome remake almost seems inevitable once Hollywood sees this and decides to make it more explicit and simple.

Lost Things is an interesting movie! It's quite disturbing because it has a strong psychological basis. There are no gore scenes, there's almost no blood, but there's a tense atmosphere since the beginning (and the soundtrack helps it a lot, with some classical and disturbing string sounds!).

When the first clues were given I thought: "well, I've seen this before… it's another "scary movie" with a predictable end…" And in a certain way it is, because the main topic of the plot it's very predictable and the viewer who pays a little attention to some details soon will understand that something strange happened in the past with these guys… But when the plot is being reveled, it doesn't give you all the complete answers… There are some little details that remain unclear even after the movie ends, and I appreciate this I must say! I like movies which have a complex plot and make me think, and this one did!

There are some scenes really amazing because you have a parallel viewing over the story. It's like your screen were divided into two parts and you can see what's happening now and what happened before…

The scenario of the film is pretty nice too. The beach is beautiful and I think it was a very nice idea (and quite original too!) to transform such amazing beach into a Limbo!

Don't expect a clichéd stereotypical slasher-fest with Lost Things(LT). It is thought provoking and makes you think and ask questions long after the credits finish.

LT seems straight forward, the tale of 4 teenagers sneaking away for a weekend of supposed debauchery and unwholesome fun... well that's where the similarities end in comparison to the afore mentioned stereotypical slashers. LT makes you think. It is a cognitive tale that doesn't treat the audience as if they are all pubescent fools.

However there are some glaring anomalies that seriously detract the viewer. Firstly the two lead teenage male actors are too similar in appearance and mannerisms; it was difficult to distinguish them at times. The screenplay seemed to lose its way with continuity and dialogue in places that was actually frustrating. And the editing and cinematography seemed to be jumbled and 'roughly cut' with shots and scenes thrown together haphazardly even when the viewer has the benefit of hindsight at the end of the film.

Overall though LT is a clever little outing. It would score higher but for the technical downfalls. I for one though do appreciate a good cognitive thriller ... and Lost Things tried.

Four teenagers with the end of school on the horizon head up the New South Wales coast for a weekend of surfing,drinking and sex.The boys have told their parents they are going alone.It's only when the stranger appears and weird time anomalies occur on the beach and in the camp that they start thinking.Admittedly the premise of "Lost Things" is quite interesting,but hardly original.The film actually in many ways reminded me "Dead End".The acting is sub-par,but I must applaud the excellent work of cinematographer.The lonely beach indeed looks creepy and atmospheric and such details like the mannequin buried in the sand put the smile on my face.The climax is satisfying of itself,but is undermined by too many unanswered questions.Give it a look,however if you want to see seriously eerie horror flick that will make you think afterwards rent or buy "Session 9".6 out of 10.

The teenagers Gary (Leon Ford), Brad (Charlie Garber), Emily (Lenka Kripac) and Tracey (Alex Vaughan) travel in a Kombi to a desert paradisiacal beach and spend the weekend together, the boys expecting to surf and have sex with the girls. When they arrive, they meet the older Zippo (Steve Le Marquand), and they have the sensation of Déjà vu with weird events, feeling that they had previously been in that place. Along the Saturday, they see that they are actually trapped in a nightmare.

"Lost Things" is one of the best surprises I have recently seen on DVD. The refreshing and original story has a great screenplay, direction and performances, basically in one location, three actors and two actresses. I started seeing this low-budget movie not paying much attention and I really expected a stupid teenager slash-movie, with lots of gore and naked women. I was completely wrong, and I found an intriguing story, following the pattern of a David Lynch film, and showing an absolutely different view of the Limbo. I saw in IMDb that this is the first feature of the unknown director Martin Murphy, and I really expect to see his next works. Last but not the least, I would like to congratulate this director, the writer Stephen Sewell, the actors and actress for their excellent performances and the crew that made possible this engaging little gem. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Férias Selvagens" ("Wild Vacations")