Common Sense Media Review
Throwback to '70s slasher movies isn't for kids.
Parents Need to Know
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Wolf Creek
What's the Story?
Based on "actual events," WOLF CREEK follows the harrowing adventures of 20-somethings Ben (Nathan Phillips), Liz (Cassandra Magrath), and Kristy (Kestie Morassi), who drive for days to reach to Wolf Creek, a meteor crater and hiking area in the Australian Outback. When their car breaks down, Mick (John Jarratt) emerges from the pitch-black night and offers a tow to his garage where he says he can fix their engine. Uneasy, they go along and try not to make fun of their "colorful" host. After an evening spent chatting by a campfire, Liz wakes to find herself tied, gagged, and bloodied in a shed, having been drugged and dragged from her friends. Meanwhile, Mick is torturing Kristy in another building. Now free, Liz finds a collection of snapshots and video footage of Mick's previous victims and realizes he's a demented serial killer. Far from civilization, Liz and Kristy can only run and fall, scream and drive, crash and scream some more.
Is It Any Good?
With a plot predictable by generic definition (it's a slasher movie), Wolf Creek's only context is other movies like it. The victims become monstrous to fight their abductor. The monster plods on, incessant, cruel, ordinary.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the random violence wreaked by an implacable, inexplicably cruel killer. This film takes up a "vintage" aesthetic, recalling low-budget, '70s horror films: what are the appeals of this look and associated class politics (middle class victims, underclass/demented/monstrous killers)? Families can also discuss what it means for a scary movie like this to be based on "actual" events. Do teens believe what they see really happened?
Movie Details
- In theaters : December 25, 2005
- On DVD or streaming : April 11, 2006
- Cast : Cassandra Magrath , John Jarratt , Kestie Morassi
- Director : Greg McLean
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Weinstein Co.
- Genre : Horror
- Run time : 95 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : strong gruesome violence, and for language.
- Last updated : September 20, 2019
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