Storm Warning (2007)

Directed by: Jamie Blanks | 82 minutes | horror | Actors: Nadia Fares, John Brumpton, Robert Taylor, David Lyons, Mathew Wilkinson, Jonathan Oldham

After a six-year hiatus, Storm Warning is Australian director Jamie Blanks’ third horror film in a row. Despite the fact that his latest production – made in his home country Australia – bears no resemblance to the American formula horrors ‘Urban Legend’ (1998) and ‘Valentine’ (2001), Blanks is once again behind the times with ‘Storm Warning’, just like his two predecessors. at. Were ‘Urban Legend’ and ‘Valentine’ still inspired by the success of ‘Scream’; ‘Storm Warning’ fits into the ranks of ‘hillbilly horrors’ such as ‘Wrong Turn’ (2003) and ‘Wolf Creek’ (2005). In particular, the success of the latter, also Australian production, will have contributed to the green light for Blanks’ latest project.

Unfortunately, ‘Storm Warning’ doesn’t add anything to the films it clearly draws inspiration from. Just like in ‘Wolf Creek’, the main characters in the film get lost in the vast, deserted areas of Australia. This time, however, it concerns a couple who stranded their boat on an island due to bad weather. For the viewer it is clear from the start that the couple will get into trouble due to impetuous weather; Blanks makes sure of that with his profusion of shots of clouds gathering above the water.

After a slow start, which is brightened up here and there by beautiful images of the rugged nature down under, the couple Rob and Pia end up with their boat on French Island in southern Australia. Looking for a hiding place, they find a dilapidated and abandoned house. But it isn’t long before the owners, a father with two not so bright sons, arrive and – you guessed it – they don’t care much for strangers. What follows is a series of humiliations and intimidations that are supposed to create tension, which, however, do not show up well. The two primitive brothers get no further than bullying, only irritating with meaningless questions like ‘What kind of car do you drive?’, only to burst into stupid laughter for inexplicable reasons when Rob declares he owns a Volvo.

Poppy, the head of the family, lies in bed during these games of his sons and does not show himself for the first time. The brothers do refer to him, however, and they also make sure not to wake him up. As a viewer you wonder what kind of creep we are dealing with. Once Poppy appears on the screen, the character in the guise of a crumpled and absent-minded alcoholic disappoints quite a bit. The three of them continue to intimidate the family and they seem to have a lot of plans for the freshly caught couple. But first they leave them unattended in a shed, where a range of sharp tools are within reach. An illogical twist, which turns the plot 180 degrees.

Because the at first timid Pia turns into a female MacGyver and puts together a creative trap. The next brother who makes the mistake of entering the barn has to suffer: one down, two to go. While it is clear to the viewer after this cover in the film how this will end, the cat-and-mouse game continues for a while. The abrupt ending that follows after this final battle makes you wonder what you’ve been watching for an hour and a half. Who were those three evil natives? Why did they become the way they are? Due to the lack of blistering tension, some more in-depth exploration of all the characters involved and a solid story, there are very few reasons to put this film in your DVD player. The beautiful shots of the Australian outbacks in this low budget production deserve an extra point, but fans of ‘Wrong Turn’ and similar hillbilly horror films should pick ‘Wolf Creek’ from the DVD shelves for an Australian outing.