Long Weekend

"Long Weekend" is a well-done, environmentally-conscious horror film from Down Under. The plot is rather simple, but makes a point: when you snooty urban dwellers go camping for the weekend, don't do anything to p**s off Mother Nature! Which is exactly what our two selfish, unappealing protagonists do; they also have a marriage that's on the rocks (gee, I wonder if they'll make it through the weekend alive? Any takers?). The acting is good (though the characters are hateful and stupid), and the emotional intensity is complemented by a very brooding atmosphere of impending horror (the night scenes will give you the willies) as Nature gears up for revenge.

6/10

A bickering couple decide to spend a long weekend at a secluded beach. Once there, the disrespect they show for their surroundings leads to nature taking it's revenge on them.

This is the epitome of Australian horror. Not only is it the best horror film to come from down under, but it's one of the best horror films, period. I first discovered this film back in the late 90's and was quite blown away by it. I love the nature strikes back sub-genre, but never had I found such films to be legitimately frightening. "Long Weekend", however, really got to me. I'm happy to say that it's still just as effective to this day.

The mood, the haunting score, the atmosphere of the beach and the overall sense of nature conspiring against the characters all makes for a remarkable amount of tension. I love this film for many of the same reasons that I love "The Blair Witch Project", though there are many differences between the two as well. What's more, the animals attacks never come off as fake. A scene where an eagle comes in search of it's egg is raw and eerie. There are no fake birds on wires or men in bear suits to be found here. Our two leads aren't very likable, but that doesn't keep the film from being an unsettling experience. You have to love the ending too, which brings things full circle.

A masterpiece of mood and tension, "Long Weekend" stands the test of time.

Peter and Marcia (John Hargreaves and Briony Behets) are having marital problems. In fact, their marriage is almost over. Peter drags Marcia on a trip to the -very isolated- Aussie seashore. Along the way, the couple spend most of their time fighting -they have a secret- and abusing nature in the same callous way that they treat each other. Slowly, very subtly, nature reacts.

Peter and Marcia are so busy hurting and blaming each other, that they hardly notice the growing menace around them. Like a tightening slipknot, the creatures close in.

LONG WEEKEND has a building atmosphere of approaching, encroaching doom, like the changes in the air before a bad storm. It's not your typical "nature's revenge" film. In this movie, the danger grows in proportion to what we learn about Peter and Marcia's history and true character. Highly recommended...

Peter (John Hargreaves) and Marcia (Briony Behets) are a city couple going through a very rough time in their marriage. But they still go on a weekend excursion to the wilderness for some camping, hiking, surfing, and the like. The problem is that Mother Nature doesn't want to help them have a good time; in fact, just the opposite. It's established early on that they display a callous disregard for the flora and fauna in their midst, and things become nightmarish and keep getting worse.

Chalk up another interesting script for the prolific Everett De Roche ("Patrick", "Roadgames", "Razorback"), who gives us characters obviously not intended to be sympathetic but still is able to get us involved in their plight. Director & producer Colin Eggleston ("Cassandra") is able to develop an overwhelmingly sinister and uneasy atmosphere, injecting melodrama from his characters' lives at select points but never letting it distract from the suspense.

Beautiful scenery and impressive widescreen photography by Vincent Monton combine with lush music composed by Michael Carlos and first rate animal action here. In addition, the scenario manages to keep from being overly predictable, and there is a level of surrealism as we see that Peter and Marcia often end up travelling in circles, and an incident during the weekend, involving a dugong, keeps coming back to haunt them. There are effective animal attacks, but these never become the films' main reason for existing. Instead, the tension between our two main characters (very well played by Hargreaves and Behets) is made more palpable by the situations in which they find themselves.

A somber and serious film, this is well worth a look for any follower of the entire "nature strikes back" genre.

Eight out of 10.

Brilliant film, eerie and atmospheric. Stays on your mind for a long time after watching. One of my favourites. The part where the sea creature wails like a baby is especially good. The image of the eagle egg being smashed against the tree kept coming back and haunting me long after the film had finished. A lot of weird happenings in the film - what happened to the people in the other camper van? You never actually got to see them, just their vicious little dog! This is a film I could happily watch over and over without getting fed up. I would love to be able to get this video either on video or DVD but it seems it's been withdrawn. Can anyone help me get a hold of this video or DVD? I would be grateful to hear from anyone else who likes this movie too.