Razorback (1984)

Pretty Good

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

In the Australian outbacks, Jake Cullen (Bill Kerr) is on trial for the murder of his two year old grandson. He claims an attack by a rampaging razorback. He is acquitted but becomes an outcast. Two years later, NY reporter Beth Winters travels to Australia to report on kangaroos being slaughtered for pet food. Her investigation leads to a confrontation which ends with her death by the razorback. Her husband Carl (Gregory Harrison) follows her footsteps to search for the truth.This is in the long line of Ozploitation films. It's got a bit of Mad Max. The pig is kept out of sight for the most part which draws comparison to Jaws. It's nowhere near as effective. The acting is par for the course. Part of that is Harrison leading the movie after 30 minutes. After following various characters, he struggles to take the lead. It would be simpler to start the movie with Beth's investigating and jump to Carl quicker. Jake can be introduced later as a mysterious Captain Ahab. The introduction of love interest Sarah Cameron does clash with his search for justice for his wife. Try as they may, the pre-CGI razorback has great limitations. This is a functional B-movie at best.

I just watched Australian film called Razorback (1984) and I was surprised how much I enjoyed watching this movie. The opening scene is one of the most beautifully shot scenes in the 80's. The cinematography is all that truly remarkable and the editing is excellent. It's like Jaws, but with a giant killer pig. If they ever re-make to this movie, they will obviously use a CGI wild boar. In the fact that model razorback was built at a cost of $250 thousand and is seen for only a few minutes, but the movie still made me interesting watching to the end. This was pretty awesome Australian film and great entertainment with some breathtaking photography. I'd give it a 8.5 out of 10.

A lot of horror movies dealing with animals were getting big all the times. Rather than a shark, dogs, cats, or other vicious wildlife that can endanger man. In Australia, a rabid kangaroo won't do. You get, "Razorback"! This pig can make other wild pigs, look tame. This porcine terror is a juggernaut of the Outback. It was a very rare mutant pig that can seemingly not easily be killed. This terrible pig runs through the yard at night running through a house, and carrying off the old man's grandson he just put to bed. Though he was cleared of his grandson's death, he was left a broken and angry man. Two years later, a reporter from New York comes to the Outback to do an expose on wildlife being used as dog food. She encounter two deranged locals. Gets attacked by them, but later met her end by the monster pig. The husband looks for answers. He meets the past victim, and gets into action. Gregory Harrison does a great job in his role. He's known for playing Gonzo on "Trapper John, M.D." And after this movie, what makes you think about a remake, Hmmm? This movie was "porky", and I don't mean the raunchy comedy! There's plenty of cheese factor to it, but it's interesting to watch. 2 out of 5 stars

Based on the novel by Peter Brennan, and scripted by the then prolific Everett De Roche, the horror movie "Razorback" works well in terms of shocks yet also has an undeniable sense of humour to it as well. It doesn't always take itself too seriously, which is nice. Its single most fascinating and effective aspect is the way it shows off the Outback landscape, showing it as both a beautiful and scary place.The story proper kicks off when Beth Winters (Judy Morris), an animal rights activist / reporter, travels to the Outback to cover a story about kangaroo slaughter. Instead she meets and becomes a meal for an enormous, ferocious wild boar - a boar that had already snacked on an infant and destroyed a house in the pre-credits sequence. Beths' husband Carl (TV veteran Gregory Harrison) goes to Australia himself to find out what had happened and ends up having to help the locals vanquish the beast.As directed by Russell Mulcahy, who went on to helm "Highlander", "Razorback" is at its best when basking in the atmosphere inherent to this wilderness. When Carl is abandoned by trouble making jerks the Baker brothers (Chris Haywood, David Argue), and has to make a trek across the countryside, there are some truly great and surreal moments. The cinematography by Dean Semler, who had shot "The Road Warrior", and who went on to tremendous success in Hollywood, is truly impressive. Location work is excellent, as well, and Iva Davies' music is perfect accompaniment to the action. The makeup effects and rampaging razorback are the work of Bob McCarron (whose other credits include "The Road Warrior", "Howling III", "Dead Alive", and "The Matrix") and crew. This is an enjoyably grisly and visceral movie and doesn't skimp on thrills.The acting is solid - Harrison is fine as an average guy & unlikely sort of hero, the lovely and appealing Arkie Whiteley, who sadly died way too young, is a joy as female lead Sarah, Bill Kerr solidly convincing as the vengeance minded old boar hunter, and Haywood and Argue appropriately repulsive as the human antagonists.Overall, this is a good deal of fun that puts its own spin on the entire "nature strikes back" sub genre that was especially popular in the '70s after the success of "Jaws". For those who may scoff at the thought of a giant killer pig movie, it's more entertaining than one might think and as said is not playing everything 100% straight faced anyway. Horror fans are advised to give it a shot.Seven out of 10.