Displaying items by tag: Colin Eggleston

INNOCENT PREY

Australia, 1984, 80 minutes, Colour.

P.J. Soles, Kit Taylor, Greg Taylor, Martin Balsam, John Warnock, Richard Morgan.

Directed by Colin Eggleston.

A psychological thriller from the hero of so-called exploitation thrillers, the 1980s, especially a river range of films by producer, David Hannay. They were criticised as exploitation of the time – and time has not improved their reputation or the quality.

The co-writer director, Colin Eggleston, had a career in television and with films, especially Long Weekend. Filming for Innocent Prey took place both in Dallas and in Sydney. In those decades, American actors came out to perform in Australian films, here P.J.Souls who appeared in Carrie. And, in a surprising guest spot as a sheriff, Oscar-winner, Martin Balsam.

The first part of the film is in Texas, Cathy in a marriage with Joel, his alleged business interests, a meeting with some oily alleged businessman who threaten him, his then going to a motel, hiring a prostitute, and/-killing her. Cathy had taken her Australian friend to the airport, driving back had noticed her husband’s car, looked in the window and witnessed the killing. She goes home. He arrives, menaces her but she is saved because she has been in contact with her friend, the sheriff. The husband is arrested and imprisoned – but a violent escape, hiding his identity and making for Australia where Cathy has decided to move.

Another weird character in Sydney, a wealthy man who has set up cameras in a mansion he owns, spying on Cathy’s friend, then spying on Cathy when she arrives. But, he then makes himself known and ingratiates himself with Cathy. However, there is a divorced father who is a friend, with Cathy falling in love… And a nice family sequence.

Surprisingly, the slasher husband is peremptorily killed off while audiences may have been expecting quite a dramatic, melodramatic confrontation. But, then it is the turn of the eerie neighbour, a deadly confrontation with the divorced husband, and a melodramatic climax – with unnecessary detail of the husband having a razor.

The film was delayed for seven years in release. It is fairly unpersuasive decades later.