Not Quite Hollywood

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Horrorphile - September 2008

Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation!

September 16th 2008 00:34

Recently I saw The Square (2008), the Australian modern noir tale co-written by Joel Edgerton and directed by brother Nash, and it rocked my socks off. About time Australia got back to the nitty-gritty. Prior to The Square I’d championed Greg Mclean’s Rogue (2007), the Jaws in the Outback flick which inexplicably, and unfortunately, failed to do anywhere the same box office as Mclean’s first feature, the much darker Wolf Creek (2005).

Despite Rogue's poor business, it is quite apparent that genre filmmaking is making a significant return in the local film industry. So it is fitting that a documentary gloriously reveling in the heyday that was genre filmmaking in Australia during the 70s and 80s has finally been made. And as the title suggests, this is a story that hasn’t been told before, mostly due to the fact that the vast majority of these movies were only seen by a minority at drive-ins and the high-brow critics would prefer to leave them under the rock they crawled out from.

There were however a clutch of these shamelessly exploitative gems that made a big splash in cinema-going circles, both down under and overseas; movies like the sexploitation frolics Alvin Purple and Felicity, the chunder-bawdy Adventures of Barry McKenzie, the shlock-horror of Patrick (1978), the kung-fu mayhem of The Man from Hong Kong, and probably the most famous Ozploitation flick of them all, Mad Max (1979).

Dennis Hopper as Mad Dog Morgan

Not Quite Hollywood is directed by Mark Hartley, a man who has a serious passion for the subject matter, and it's evident in the rollicking, bawdy, brutal, in-yer-face, exploitation-esque style in which the doco has been packaged and presented, right from the opening archival instruction footage on how to fit your drive-in speaker to your car, to the same voice-over at the end making sure you unplug the speaker before driving off slowly to exit carpark left.

Mad Max, a time before real safety on location

I’d heard of a number of these movies, and seen a handful, but there were so many I’d never heard of. I had no idea there was such a glut of exploitation movies being produced in Australia, much to the disdain the so-called cultured audiences. Cinephile and famously grumpy film critic Bob Ellis (who directed his own piece of "high-brow" trash, Warm Nights on a Slow Moving Train, which rather curiously is never mentioned) is among the two dozen or more filmmakers, film historians, and actors who are interviewed. Bob, of course, doesn’t have a single good thing to say. Bless him.

The Man from Hong Kong Grant Page and Yu Wang

Stuntman extraordinaire Grant Page and Yu Wang in The Man from Hong Kong

Apart from the outrageous stunts performed by crazed people like Grant Page, there's notorious drunkards like Dennis Hopper (on Mad Dog Morgan) and the late David Hemmings (who directed Race for the Yankee Zypher), there’s an abundance of nudity, male and female (there's more bush here than in the White House!), including in all his overhung glory, John Holmes, who appeared in the porn-mockumentary Fantasm.

Chantal Contouri in vamp flick Thirst

Big established name interviewees include directors George Miller, Fred Schepisi, Russell Mulcahy, Richard Franklin, playwright David Williamson, cinematographer John Seale, actors Jamie Lee Curtis, Stacy Keach, and Barry Humphries (he’s got some hilarious tidbits on the making of Barry McKenzie) among heaps of local actors who cringe when they remember some of the on-set antics. The real coup is having Quentin Tarantino wax lyrical about all the violent, vehicular carnage, and how he dedicated – much to the local audiences shocked surprise – Kill Bill at its Sydney premiere to director Brian Trenchard-Smith, the unsung B-movie hero who made the notorious “Z-grade” Turkey Shoot (1982, and was rated R20 in New Zealand!) and Dead-End Drive-In (1986), which is Tarantino’s favourite Ozploitation movie.

Razorback's deadly titular boar

There are hilarious anecdotes and fascinating insights into the Australian film industry during this crazy, unhinged, unbridled two-decade period. Sure, a lot of the movies were utter crap, but many were the perfect piece of escapism, when drive-ins were the perfect date spot, and that’s who exploitation movies were mostly made for: vulgar, profane party people keen to let their hair down, rip the scabs off a few bevvies, and have some irresponsible fun at the expense of some violent, sexist imagery on the giant screen.

Turkey Shoot Olivia Hussey and Roger Ward

Oliva Hussey slumming it and Roger Ward method acting in Turkey Shoot

Thanks to Mark Hartley and his doco-tribute Not Quite Hollywood, a plethora of movies are being re-introduced, and for younger audiences, discovered. Many of these movies are no available on DVD. Of course, it’d be fantastic if some of these movies could be screened in the few remaining drive-ins that still exist in the Australian outer-west suburbs. I’d kill to see drive-in double features of Mad Max and The Road Warrior, or Mad Dog Morgan and Stone, or Razorback and Turkey Shoot, just to name a few.

A VERY young Nicole Kidman and mates in BMX Bandits

For any fan of deep trash, Not Quite Hollywood is essential viewing. For anyone interested in “culturally-relevant” film history Not Quite Hollywood is essential viewing. For any lovers of balls-to-the-wall, cinematic insolence - with pierced tongue in cheek - Not Quite Hollywood is the cocky, scholarly indulgence for you!

Here's the trailer to the documentary:

And for a selection of twenty-two different Ozploitation trailers (shown in drive-in “format”) click here

Not Quite Hollywood DVD - with lots of extras - can be pre-ordered from Madman Entertainment.

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Posted By: Bryn - Category: movie reviews

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Comments

13 Comments. [ Add A Comment ]

Comment by Damo

September 16th 2008 01:48

For the Sake of Argument
My Apologetics

I am in two mind about this.

Some of these were great flicks.
Mad Dog Morgan.
Mad Max
Man from Hong Kong

but others were puerile crap.
Bazza Mc?

Whatever happened to Turkey Shoot?
The film where Linda Stoner gets stabbed in the breast causing Philip Adams to walk out of the preview.

Still the promo video for this does make many look terrific in comparison to the Art House dullsville stuff we are making now.

Bring back the mad men of Guerilla cinema.
We really do need them.

Comment by Cibbuano

September 16th 2008 02:26

20/20 Filmsight
Science News
Hunt Famous
Orble Post of the Day
Fat Cult
Techbreak

I've never seen any Ozploitation... other than the big titles, are they any good? Have you seen that Eskimo Nell movie?

Comment by Bryn

September 16th 2008 02:42

Horrorphile

Damo, yeah, I intend to review Turkey Shoot in coming weeks! And I wanna get my dirty hands on a copy of Mad Dog Morgan ...

Cibby, some good, some not so good, some crap. Nope, haven't seen Ms. Nell ... Can't comment on the pic, but she had nice knockers

Comment by James Rickard

September 16th 2008 04:59

unlucky_ fishermen.com
Angling Fish

It's not exactly Ozploitation but I'd say I'd think all Australians should be embarrassed by Mick Jagger's Ned Kelly!

Comment by James Rickard

September 16th 2008 05:00

unlucky_ fishermen.com
Angling Fish

It's not exactly Ozploitation but I'd say I'd think all Australians should be embarrassed by Mick Jagger's Ned Kelly!

Comment by Bryn

September 16th 2008 05:36

Horrorphile

James, you haven't seen Dennis Hopper's Mad Dog Morgan, although he was Irish ... errr.

Comment by Damo

September 16th 2008 07:20

For the Sake of Argument
My Apologetics

Mad Dog had Frank Thring in it also if I remember correctly.

Then again he was every film.

Comment by Bryn

September 16th 2008 08:36

Horrorphile

Damo, yeah but it was directed by Phillipe Mora ... the man responsible for Howling 3: The Marsupials.

Comment by Damo

September 16th 2008 09:15

For the Sake of Argument
My Apologetics

I also remember that someone had a money pouch lined up for after they got Mad Dog.

Cracker of a show.

I have not found an excuse to watch Howling 3. But with the kids holidays coming up I may take it out on DVD.
Why not life is too short.

Comment by JohnDoe

September 16th 2008 10:14

Film & TV on DVD

hey Bryn,

Bring on the Turkey Shoot review, that film makes me laugh.

Comment by David O'Connell

September 16th 2008 10:51

Screen Fanatic

Hey Bryn, some of those films were quite good, in a guilty pleasure kind of way. Especially Razorback, for me, which I enjoyed many years ago and again fairlyrecently as well. Nothing like a bunch of repulsive redneck Aussies being mown down by a giant squealer!!

Comment by Bethany

September 16th 2008 15:05

Martian Movies

First of all... Howling 3: The MARSUPIALS? Really? I mean, that was a joke... right? Because the only thing less terrifying than the word marsupial is... I dunno, that's like Howling 3: the killer panda bears. Although I shouldn't laugh, I'm pretty sure there was a B-grade horror movie about shrews becoming giant and eating a town or something...

Er, anyway, I like a well-done discussion of any genre, so I'll have to catch this one. Also, I need to go buy a copy of Mad Max, I haven't seen that in AGES.

Comment by Bryn

September 17th 2008 01:05

Horrorphile

JD, stay tuned ...

David, Russell Highlander Mulcahy directed it ... And admits the pig is too big.

Bethany, yeah, Marsupials director Phillipe Mora is a hack alright. Although his flick The Beast Within had its moments. Mad Max, now there's a movie!

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