Inn of the Damned is a 1975 Australian western horror film, directed by Terry Bourke. It has been called Australia's first "horror Western".[3]
| Inn of the Damned | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Terry Bourke |
| Written by | Terry Bourke |
| Produced by | Terry Bourke Rod Hay |
| Starring | Judith Anderson Alex Cord Michael Craig Joseph Furst Tony Bonner |
| Cinematography | Brian Probyn |
| Edited by | Rod Hay |
| Music by | Bob Young |
Production company | Terryrod Productions |
| Distributed by | Roadshow Entertainment |
Release date |
|
Running time | 118 minutes |
| Country | Australia |
| Language | English |
| Budget | AU$417,000[1] |
| Box office | AU$178,000 (Australia)[2] |
Plot
editIn 1896, a crazed woman and her husband run an inn in eastern Victoria and take revenge for the deaths of their children years before. Cal Kincaid, an American bounty hunter, arrives to investigate recent murders and puts an end to the killing.
Cast
edit- Judith Anderson as Caroline Straulle
- Alex Cord as Cal Kincaid
- Michael Craig as Paul Melford
- Robert Quilter as Biscayne
- Joseph Furst as Lazar Straulle
- Tony Bonner as Trooper Moore
- John Meillon as George Parr
- Reg Gorman as Coach Driver
- Lionel Long
Production
editLike Bourke's previous feature, Night of Fear, the film was originally a one-hour script intended for a projected TV series, Fright.
It was filmed in the Mangrove Mountain region of the NSW Central Coast and at Artransa Studios in Sydney. Filming began in November 1973 and took nine weeks but the film was not released until late in 1975. Shooting was marred by disputes between the producers and its principal investor, Australian Film Development Corporation.[4] At the time it was the most expensive local film made in Australia.[1]
Release
editCritical reception
editAllMovie called it "more odd than good", and "best viewed as a curiosity."[5] DVD Verdict wrote, "as curiosities go, this Australian horror western (?) from the early '70s definitely deserves some attention."[6]
Home video
editThe film was released on DVD alongside 1972 Australian horror film Night of Fear (also directed by Bourke) by Umbrella Entertainment on 16 March 2005.[7] This combo was re-released for Blu-ray on 9 November 2022 as volume 20 of Umbrella's Ozploitation collection.[8]
References
edit- ^ a b David Stratton, The Last New Wave: The Australian Film Revival, Angus & Robertson, 1980 p263
- ^ Australian Films at the Box Office - Report to Film Victoria Archived 9 February 2014 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 5 October 2012
- ^ Vagg, Stephen (24 July 2019). "50 Meat Pie Westerns". Filmink.
- ^ Andrew Pike and Ross Cooper, Australian Film 1900–1977: A Guide to Feature Film Production, Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1998, p 295
- ^ Guarisco, Donald. "Inn of the Damned (1974) - Review - AllMovie". AllMovie. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ Gibron, Bill (1 May 2009). "DVD Verdict Review - The Drive-In Cheezy Movie Collection". DVD Verdict. Archived from the original on 5 May 2009. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ "Umbrella Entertainment - INN OF THE DAMNED/NIGHT OF FEAR (Double Feature)". umbrellaent.com. Archived from the original on 30 December 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ "Night Of Fear + Inn Of The Damned (Ozploitation #20) (Blu-Ray) (1973 + 1975)". Umbrella Entertainment. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
Release Date: 09 Nov 2022
External links
edit- Inn of the Damned at IMDb
- Inn of the Damned at Rotten Tomatoes
- Inn of the Damned at Oz Movies