Razorback (1984)

If you watch one giant killer pig movie, make it Razorback! Directed by Russell Mulcahy (director of "Highlander" and just about every early 80s music video you can remember ["Rio", "True", "Video Killed the Radio Star", "I'm Still Standing", etc...]), this minor Ozploitation classic has a vicious wild boar wreaking havoc upon a small community in the Australian outback. At first, no one believes that a giant pig is behind the deaths and mayhem, but the community slowly begins to discover the truth and are forced to deal with this angel of death in the form of a massive animatronic killer pig (well, it's supposed to be a live pig, but it's portrayed by a sweet looking giant pig puppet). This film is, of course, complete nonsense, but it's wildly fun nonsense. "Jaws" is the pinnacle of this sort of nature-gone-wild type of film, and "Razorback" is nowhere in that same league, but I'd argue that it's a minor classic on the level of "Piranha" or "Alligator." The films stars Gregory Harrison of "Trapper John, M.D." fame and was shot by Oscar winning cinematographer Dean Semler, so it's a quality made exploitation film. Overall, "Razorback" will absolutely entertain fans of these sorts of films (meaning if a giant killer pig running amok does not sound like a quality film premise, "Razorback" is probably not for you).

This distinctly average Australian horror film about a giant boar is indeed a gigantic bore. The trouble with this film is that there's nothing new in it; all we see are tired clichés (the disappearance of the main character reeks of PSYCHO) played out over and over again. The main hero, Carl, is a handsome face but not particularly likable; the scientist woman set up as a heroine has little to do. The only believable character is the old man, Jake.The two hicks are the detestable kind of weirdos which seem to inhabit every Australian horror/sci-fi (DEATH WARMED UP for example). The final scene in the slaughterhouse is dull; how many scenes in action films take place in abandoned factories? The boar itself is hardly ever seen; all we get is a close-up of the snout and some occasional shots of a still creature. When we do see the creature it looks like it was made of bin liners, fur, and cardboard. Highly forgettable, in my opinion, and not worth the money I spent on it. I once read a really good novel about a giant boar by Graham Masterton...

Billed as "Jaws" in the outback, "Razorback" is more like a toothless cross between "Wake in Fright" and "Mad Max". The killer pig is barely seen throughout the run time and you are never encouraged to be scared of it.More menacing (though not by much) are a group of post-apocalyptic looking kangaroo shooters who intend to rape a young American newsreader doing a report on animal cruelty. Of course she doesn't really get raped - this is only a horror movie, after all - the pig conveniently arrives to kill her instead (which we don't see happen).Then her spouse shows up and we get not one but two nightmare sequences which do less to establish the pig as the thing we are supposed to be afraid of than the hunters. They are not believable characters, though, and they're more irritating than intimidating.Anyway, the movie disposes of both so easily that you wonder why you were ever supposed to care. You never really get to see the "razorback", and its death scene is singularly unconvincing and underwhelming.In actual fact, the pig deserves some kind of medal for humanity - a Porcine Peace Prize, if you will - for always arriving to perform acts of mercy. For example, when the young lady is going to be raped, she is spared that fate and is merely killed (rape is worse than murder, right?) Later when her spouse is going to take revenge, he hesitates before pulling the trigger, and what do you know? There's the pig again, taking the crisis out of the Canuck's hands and killing the would-be rapist for him.

From the director of 1986's Highlander and the 1991 sequel The Quickening, Russell Mulcahy brings you a monster revival flick involving a giant killer boar, also known as a "razorback." What we have here is a cleverly executed film, alittle typical considering the time period, but entertaining nonetheless.A young woman by the name of Beth Winters is sent on assignment to film a wildlife documentary in the Australian Outback. The locals don't take too kindly to her nationality while she attempts to conduct her business and two disturbed individuals decide to attack her in a secluded area. Suddenly, they are brought face to face with a large beast out in the wilderness; an overly-sized razorback boar, thought to be a legend among the people. An experienced boar hunter, Jake Cullen, knows the nature of this beast due to his grandson being dragged off into the night by it two years earlier. Now, after the disappearance of his wife Beth, Carl travels to Australia in search of her...and what he finds there is more than he bargained for.There's not much to knitpick here. When I initially read the premise I half-expected the turnout to be lame but it wasn't so bad after all. Films of this nature really aren't my cup of tea but I rated it highly. The acting is solid for what it needs to be and the techniques utilized for the monster sequences were decent. Since this was 1984 one can expect to see animatronics and tricky camera angles to get the point across...I didn't feel that any of the scenes involving the boar were lame or obnoxious. Some of my favorite shots involved dark silhouettes against the bright orange backdrop of the Outback horizon. At one point during the film you can hear a Duran Duran song play over the car radio...clearly an amusing connection due to Malcahy's involvement in several of Duran Duran's music videos early in their career - the most famous being "Hungry Like the Wolf" in 1982.I wouldn't go out and purchase this movie but that doesn't mean I wouldn't recommend it for anyone seeking alittle fun. Razorback doesn't take itself too seriously and there's enough action and excitement to go braindead for 90 minutes. Give this one a shot.