Turkey Shoot

Escape 2000
Blood Camp Thatcher

Australia 1982
produced by
William Fayman, Anthony I. Ginnane, John Daly (executive), David Hemmings (executive) for Hemdale, FGH, Filmco
directed by Brian Trenchard-Smith
starring Steve Railsback, Olivia Hussey, Michael Craig, Carmen Duncan, Noel Ferrier, Lynda Stoner, Roger Ward, Michael Petrovitch, Gus Mercurio, John Ley, Bill Young, Steve Rackman, John Golden, Oriana Panozzo
story by David Lawrence, George Schenck, Robert Williams, screenplay by Jon Gorge, Neill D.Hicks, music by Brian May, special effects by John Stears

review by
Mike Haberfelner

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In a totalitarian society, innocent Chris (Olivia Hussey), prostitute Rita (Lynda Stoner) and all-around good guy and revolutionary who has broken out of every prison Paul (Steve Railsback) are thrown into an unisex jail - where men and women even share the shower room - run by sadistic warden (is there any other kind) Thatcher (Michael Craig).

After all the usual prison shenanigans, including violent guards, bullying, humiliation, our innocent girl almost getting raped, and let's not forget Chris and Paul falling in love (you knew it right from the beginning), the film takes a slightly different turn, as our brutal Mr Thatcher likes to organize manhunts for rich customers ... and guess whom he chooses for this hunt's human prey ... that's right, Paul, Chris and Rita, plus the resourceful Griff (Bill Young) and the slimey turncoat Dodge (John Ley).

The odds are of course totally against our quintet, and soon Thatcher's little hunting party - including Jennifer (Carmen Duncan), who hunts on horseback using bow and arrow, including some exploding arrows - has disposed of three fifth of the bunch in a rather gruesome manner.

And you wouldn't have guessed who the two survivors are: Chris and Paul, who have teamed up and try to make it off the hunting ground's premises when they have to realize they are on an island. Still, the two of them manage to overcome the prison's head guard (Roger Ward) by cutting off his hands and take his weapons, then they acquire a car with an attached machine gun from another hunter, and finally they go back to the prison camp and start a revolt, which results in many people (including Thatcher) dieing in various gruesome ways and ultimately the camp being bombarded by the Air Force - though I'm not really sure why.

However, Chris and Paul and several of the other prisoners can escape and ... end !

This blend of prison movie clichés, manhunt mainstays à la Most Dangerous Game and dystopian science fiction is a fairly routine action movie that does on the plus side feature some gruesome gore effects and interesting setpieces, on the other hand though, the story is just too clichéd to really arouse much interest, and several of the characters, especially too-innocent-to-be-true Chris and too-good-to-be-true Paul, are simply annoying (not at all helped by the fact that both Olivia Hussey and Steve Railsback do little to bring their characters to life).

In all, the film might be amusing for a time, but as a whole it's not really worth your while.

review © by Mike Haberfelner

 

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