Share Send Print

Red Hill

movies|red%20hill|2010-11-25

A policeman relocates to the small outback town. As he comes to grips with his new job, he's alerted to a dangerous criminal's escape from a nearby prison.

Video

This video cannot be viewed because you either have Javascript turned off, no Flash player or an older version of Flash. Get the latest Flash player

Editorial

Revenge is a dish best served cold, a fact surely not lost on the cast of writer-director Patrick Hughes's exhilarating debut, Red Hill, shot in the freezing setting of Omeo, Victoria. This gritty actioner uses the expansive wintery wilderness of its remote location to make a defiantly Aussie adventure.

Taking inspiration from High Noon, the Coen brothers, Clint Eastwood's 1970s Westerns and the dangerous freeways of Mad Max, Red Hill sets its sights on the big league. This neo-Western is only let down when its relatively low-budget origins are revealed. Despite the lack of funds, Hughes's script attracted some bonzer acting talent. True Blood's Kwanten exchanges bottles of blood for a police badge as the new cop-on-the-block. He more than holds his own against the likes of Steve Bisley and Jimmie Blacksmith himself, Tommy Lewis.

Hughes proves to be perfectly at home with explosive gunplay, but overshoots when he weaves too many strands into his emotional finale.

When all is said and done, it's great to see a new Australian director take control and go for broke. Whatever your opinion of Hughes's vengeful flick, you can't deny his aspirations are epic.

Rory Meyer