Throwback (2015)

This movie is bloody gold :) meet Travis Bain the other week and Vernon Wells they are totally awesome guys. Keep making the awesome work guys hope you fellas see this review I'll definitely be a regular for your films now Travis :) love the use of the beautiful cairns forests and Paronelka park absolutely amazing screen writing and acting. Cannot wait to see more for you :) I love how you kept the suspense and mystery going throughout the whole film and always kept you thinking and alert all the way through the film. I loved the alternate ending featured on the DVD that ending was awesome. I loved how you turned an Aussie legend no one has ever thought of doing before into such an amazing film for the first of it kind its killer :)

There's something in the trees. It's big and it's shaggy and could possibly be a Yowie, a kind of Bigfoot-type. Only glimpsed sporadically and often partially obscured by rampant foliage, this familiar trick by Director (and writer) Travis Bain is used to tease us as to the specifics of the creature's appearance, and also to obfuscate any short-comings of the man-in-a-suit costume. No CGI here.Kent and Jack (Anthony Ring and Shawn Brack, soon joined by Melanie Serrafin as Rhiannon) are such good fun that despite the former's continual misdeeds, it is a shame when he dies – partly because, because he has proved to be such a louse, he deserved a more prolonged send-off. The dialogue contains many moments of humour, but this is never allowed to dispel the carefully built up scenes with the Yowie, which rarely transcends its man-in-a-suit origins, sadly.Some of the set pieces last just a little too long – there is a scene with a Detective McNabb that could have done with some judicial trimming. The creature has no end of bullets fired into it without apparent effect, and yet the human protagonists still believe a bullet will stop it.This is a good, solid story, full of surprises and twists that belies the very small budget. A couple of the gore effects are very convincing, and the scenery of misty, remote Queensland jungles are very well shot. From start to finish, this is really enjoyable, with a very satisfying ending.

"Throwback" is one of my favourite references when discussing films and therefore you can imagine my anticipation when I first heard about a new film called THROWBACK! On top of that the film is about the mythical creature The Yowie (Australia's answer to Sasquatch) and has been promoted with one of the best damn movie posters I've seen in years... yep, I was sold before I even saw it. The film tells the story of two fortune seekers who hike into the depths of a far north Queensland rainforest in search of a lost treasure. The legend has it that a notorious outlaw went in with a fortune but never came out again... and so our two antagonists walk, paddle and climb their way into the dense wilderness and unbeknownst to them the area has also been at the centre of multiple disappearances. Before long they find themselves pitted against each other before being separated, hunted and terrorized by the terrifying yowie. Throw a female park ranger and an undercover homicide detective (Vernon Wells) in to the mix and you've got a winner on your hands. THROWBACK impressed the hell out of me. Right from the get go it's clear that we're in the hands of a filmmaker who knows what he's doing. With an eye for bold, cinematic wide shots and beautiful panning it becomes obvious that the makers of this small low budget film had big things on their mind. Director Travis Bain has used the picturesque landscape to his every advantage to help ground his schlocky story with a foundation of credibility. He makes no secret of the fact that THROWBACK is a tongue-in-cheek affair and yet amongst the farcical nature of the story is a deeply seeded horror and an effective use of suspense. Where most films of this nature would keep their creature hidden in the shadows, Bain has brought him out into the light. It's a ballsy move on his part with the risk of the film's credibility at stake... but he pulls it off and manages to present a convincing monster and a suspenseful story with the assistance of solid performances and a fantastic score. The music was composed by Amotz Plessner and the legendary Richard Band (Re-Animator, From Beyond) and it will be a real deal breaker for a lot of viewers. Their score is truly wonderful. It adds bucket loads of suspense and elevates the film to a whole other level. As the film's title would suggest Travis Bain has crafted his film with a deep seeded love for genre films and he pays homage to a whole lot of them. From a nice reference to THE LEGEND OF BOGGY CREEK to an overall cue taken from CREATURE FROM BLACK LAKE... his film is one of nostalgia and it's a whole lot of fun. It has played all around to the world at various film festivals and I was lucky enough to catch it at the 2014 Monster Fest. I can say, without any reservation, that THROWBACK was my favourite film of the festival. What it has accomplished on a small budget is nothing less than extraordinary.

Don't let the small cast Throw you Back, this is quite a good film. Which I hope finds a bigger audience through distribution. I was able to watch this with the cast and crew at a special sneak peek showing this past May. And I have to tell everyone I really enjoyed it. The film reminds me of the times when a film could shock and scare you, make you wonder what is going to happen next, while not revealing anything to the viewer until the final act. The pacing of the film is fresh and exciting. Also reminds of those early Universal Monster films as well as most recent Raiders of the Lost Ark. Beautifully shot in Australia, showcases locations never seen on film. Acting is also top notch, especially the bad guy.I know I mention nothing about what the film was about, that for you the viewer to seek out and enjoy for yourselves. So check it out when or as soon as you can.