Fortress (1985)

Simply Perfect

Memorable, crazy movie

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Young school teacher Sally Jones (a fine and credible performance by the lovely Rachel Ward) and her nine students are taken hostage by four masked gunmen. The teacher and her students soon realize that in order to survive this grueling ordeal they will have to take action on their own and fight back. Tightly directed by Arch Anderson, with a substantial amount of nerve-wracking suspense, a tough, gritty, take-no-prisoners tone (the climax with the teacher and her students brutally attacking the last remaining gunman with makeshift spears is positively shattering), and startling outbursts of sudden ferocious violence, this very tense and effective little gut-kicker packs a really strong and mean wallop. Everett De Roche's gripping and hard-hitting script delivers a disturbing and provocative central message on how anyone can degenerate into savagery if given the proper stimulus. Ward's protective teacher impresses with her bravery, spunkiness, and resourcefulness. The child thespians do solid and believable work. The masked gunmen are genuinely fierce and frightening, with Peter Hehir in particular a scary stand-out as vicious ring leader Father Christmas. The remote rural Aussie outback locations convey a profoundly unsettling feeling of isolation and vulnerability. David Connell's sharp and lively cinematography offers several striking images. Danny Beckmann's rattling score does the heart-racing trick. A real powerhouse.

I watched this movie when I was 18 and it made a great impression on me. I went wild, began to smash everything in my flat, and when my parents kicked me out, I continued to run through the park and scream and curse. Why? I don't know, but those filthy, cruel, ruthless kids and their nasty teacher disturbed me very much indeed. I even wrote a song in which I kill children and rape teachers. And that hint that the kids maybe became sexually intimate with the teacher also made me mad. I am discussing it with my therapist at this moment and it is very interesting story. I am 41 now, and I don't have any kids. I kinda have a problem with it. Consider it before you let your kids watch it.

I'm yet another 80's kid who saw this on TV and was scared witless but didn't know the name of the movie and eventually couldn't recall if it was real or just a bad nightmare (a nightmare that happened to recur on and off for the following 2 decades!!!). The masked kidnappers left permanent scars on my 8 yr old psyche, still have vivid flashbacks of the the farmhouse scenes, and am now reminded of the nerve-wracking cave swimming escape too. I must have shut off the movie before the ending, but now, 20 years later, I am happy to know they defeated the villains, albeit quite gruesomely. Thank you internet and IMDb for connecting me to the name of the movie as well as other traumatized viewers! Also, so relieved to know I didn't make the whole thing in my head.

Schoolteacher and class of rural bumpkins get kidnapped by cartoonish bunch of thugs, brought to the forest, try to escape, get caught, repeat, until they finally bond as a group and give the kidnappers a taste of their own medicine.My, the savage nature of the human animal! Sweet little children acting so viciously! Give me a break.The movie is corny, the children are annoying, the soundtrack is silly, and all that without taking into account the embarrassingly corny, "Yeah, group!" type moments. The only interesting part was the ending, but considering its ineffective buildup it didn't carry much emotional weight.If you are intent on seeing a portrayal man-as-beast, go for "Lord of the Rings" instead and let this one gather dust.