No Through Road is the debut feature of Perth filmmaker Sam Barrett, a nasty little siege thriller with its influences heavily rooted in early John Carpenter and Sam Peckinpah. The film made something of a name for itself along the 2008 festival circuit, most notably the Melbourne Underground Film Festival where it won accolades for Best Supporting Actress before landing a release on DVD via Accent Underground (regrettably without any special features) for local fright fans to enjoy.
The film tells the story of a young photographer named Richard (James Helm) who one night discovers a young woman, Samantha (Megan Palinkas) hiding in his bedroom closet, terrified and disoriented. Hesitantly, the woman claims she is being chased by a group of thugs, although for reasons she's determined not to reveal. A ute soon pulls up outside Richard’s front driveway and three men emerge, requesting the young woman come outside and join them right away. As tensions rise and horrifying truths emerge, Samantha begs Richard to protect her from the trio of brutes as the night escalates into an exhausting - and bloody - fight for survival.
In many ways No Through Road follows in line with the Aussie exploitation wave ushered in after the phenomenal success of Greg McLean’s Wolf Creek, taking a no-holds-barred approach to the depiction of screen horror for a new generation previously raised on PG13 scares. Stark, sombre and unflinching in its display of brutality, the film is confidently directed by Barrett (in addition to playing one of the thugs) who displays a knowingness for the movies he actively references (one such nod to The Shining is blatantly upfront) while still treating the material with a gravity that, if ignored, would have killed the story from the first frame. Also, Barrett’s screenplay never attempts to hide its Australian sensibilities nor does it pretend to be anything else other than a straight-ahead suburban nightmare tale, the repercussions of which are made all the more intimate and devastating through their utter believability. This is a story that could happen to anybody.
The movie boasts some impressive performances as well. Coming off as a younger version of Mick Taylor, Richie Flanagan’s incarnation of the loathsome Toryn – the film’s central villain – is commendable for his sheer contemptibility and repugnancy, while the more subdued and introverted Rob (deftly played by Keagan Kang) almost disappears into the background by comparison. Also notable is a terrific George Shevtsov as Richard’s elderly ex-cop friend who foolishly attempts an intervention in the front driveway, only to meet the cold asphalt and the opposite end of a claw hammer.
Contrary to the movie's many strengths, the only real downfall is in the slightly frustrating characterisation of the tormented Samantha her constant refusal to divulge exactly who she is and why she’s being pursued. This ambiguity at times makes her a difficult character to sympathize with and Palinkas’ performance occasionally reflects that, her best moments subsequently being those during her entrapment and constant apprehension of danger.
As a low-budget shocker and a solid (if largely derivative) survival epic, No Through Road delivers the goods, both emotionally and viscerally to create an ultimately satisfying endurance test. And while it may not be anything particularly groundbreaking, Barrett’s freshman outing is an assured mark of splatter by an up and coming local talent with the intent of bringing horror back into the home – where it belongs.
Dir: Sam Barrett
Writer: Sam Barrett & Robbie Studsor
Cast: James Helm, Megan Palinkas, Richie Flanagan, Sam Barrett
Country: Australia
Run Time: 85mins
Rating: R18+
Hey, great review. I reviewed this film last year, and I loved it! I'm glad to see that a few other people are finally discovering it. The director seems like a pretty nice guy, too. He contributed a list of his top ten horror movies to my blog last Halloween! Glad you enjoyed it.
ReplyDelete--J/Metro
My Review and Sam Barret's Horror Hotlist (if you're interested).