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PLEASE NOTE: Michael D's is currently in READ ONLY MODE. Anything submitted will simply not be written to the database.
Lots of stuff is still broken, but at least reviews can now be looked up and read.
Fair Game (Blu-ray) (1986)
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Fair Game (Blu-ray) (1986)
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Released 3-Jan-2018
This review is sponsored by
Details At A Glance
| General |
Extras |
| Category |
Thriller/Action |
Audio Commentary-with Director Mario Andreacchio & Writer Rob George
Interviews-Cast-Extended Not Quite Hollywood Interview w/ Cassandra Delaney
Featurette-Behind The Scenes-On Location with Fair Game
Featurette-Behind The Scenes-1985 TV Report From NWS9, Action News
Featurette-Behind The Scenes-1985 TV Report From ADS-7, State Affair
Featurette-Behind The Scenes-Behind the Scenes with Dean Bennett
Theatrical Trailer
Gallery
Storyboards
Short Film-Mario Andreacchio Short Films
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| Rating |
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Year Of Production
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1986
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| Running Time |
85:48
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RSDL
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Flipper
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Dual Layered
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Cast & Crew |
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Start Up
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Menu |
| Region Coding |
2,4
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Directed By |
Mario Andreacchio
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Studio
Distributor |
Umbrella Entertainment
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Starring |
Cassandra Delaney
Peter Ford
David Sandford
Garry Who
Don Barker
Carmel Young
Adrian Shirley
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| Case |
Standard Blu-ray |
| RPI |
$29.95
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Music |
Ashley Irwin
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NOTE: The Profanity Filter is ON. Turn it off here.
Plot Synopsis
A somewhat obscure “Ozploitation” action-thriller from 1986, Fair Game is more competent than its status as a cult VHS rental might imply. Reportedly produced for a scant $1.26 million, the film is overly simplistic and pared-down, clocking in at an economic 86 minutes which does not permit much time for significant character development, but it’s undeniably thrilling thanks to the superb stunt-work and taut editing. There are traces of revenge movies like I Spit on Your Grave or The Last House on the Left in Fair Game’s narrative DNA, but the archetypal genre tropes are filtered through an Australian perspective, which gives it a unique flavour and more visual appeal. Exciting and entertaining, Fair Game deserves more recognition than it appears to receive.
An attractive young animal enthusiast, Jessica (Cassandra Delaney) runs a wildlife sanctuary in the Australian outback, spending her days tending to the needs of the local fauna. However, she is confronted by a trio of kangaroo hunters - Sunny (Peter Ford), Ringo (David Sandford) and Sparks (Gary Who) - who begin hunting animals on her sanctuary. Jessica tries to put up a fight to protect the animals, but this only shifts the hunters’ attention to her. Stranded at her homestead after her car breaks down, and with no phone to call the police, Jessica is left to fend for herself as the kangaroo hunters begin to terrorise and abuse her, with potentially lethal consequences.
With a script credited to Rob George, Fair Game’s narrative is almost defiantly uncomplicated, and the story admittedly proceeds with flimsy slasher movie logic - after all, there’s no real reasonable motivation for the three hunters to begin terrorising Jessica outside of simply being bored. She does interfere with their poaching, but reacting by torturing and trying to kill her is a bit extreme. In addition, character development is slim at best - outside of a few surface-level attributes like being an animal lover, Jessica has no discernible personality. Apparently the film ran considerably longer in earlier workprint versions before being cut down to its final length of 86 minutes, but none of the excised footage has been released. Perhaps there was originally meant to be more to the narrative and the characters, but one can only speculate. To be sure, the fact that the action starts early (the first chase is literally four minutes in) and scarcely lets up does make for fast-paced viewing, but the movie does start to feel a tad repetitive in its final third. The level of torture progressively builds in intensity and severity, but there is still not quite enough variety to sustain the movie.
Fair Game was shot by legendary Kiwi cinematographer Andrew Lesnie, who went on to shoot the 1986 Aussie crocodile flick Dark Age, all six Middle-earth movies, and many more. The beautiful Australian outback is, of course, the real star of this movie, and Lesnie’s photography wonderfully shows off the outback landscapes, while the action sequences are comprehensible and well-shot. Shot on grainy 35mm film, there’s a gritty, visceral intensity to the production, with the homestead and all of the vehicles feeling authentic and lived-in, while the stunts and pyrotechnics hold up all these years on. The stunt-work is simply outstanding, with intense chase sequences and breathtaking set-pieces, the likes of which would require digital effects if the movie was produced in the 21st Century. There’s a genuine thrill inherent to watching perilous stunts from this pre-digital era, before CGI could be used to enhance action set-pieces or even remove safety wires. Fair Game really feels like more than just another VHS cheapie, as Mario Andreacchio’s direction is surprisingly assured, production values are convincing, and the film editing by Andrew Prowse (The Siege of Firebase Gloria) is tight. Also commendable is the design of The Beast, the truck that is driven by the kangaroo hunters. The visuals are nicely complemented by Ashley Irwin’s original score, which is on the cheesy side at times, but is effective and exciting more often than not.
Delaney (who slightly resembles a young Linda Hamilton) was only in her early 20s at the time of shooting and did not have much feature film experience, but she throws herself into the role both physically and mentally. It’s a convincing performance, and precisely what Fair Game needed to anchor the story. The kangaroo hunters, meanwhile, are easy to dislike, and the actors do an adequate job with the material for the most part, stilted though they occasionally may be. Dialogue is not always successful, however, with some tin-eared chatter that needlessly underscores the on-screen action when purely visual storytelling would have been sufficient and, frankly, superior.
With its energetic direction, snappy pace and rousing action set-pieces, Fair Game is better than it probably had a right to be, though don’t expect any underlying themes or emotion. This is hollow but well-executed Ozploitation, pure and simple, and it thankfully never feels too uncomfortably sadistic or in poor taste. Although the film is brutal when the occasion calls for it, the violence does admittedly feel relatively tame, even for a 1980s production. Certain moments are on the histrionic side, and the movie never exactly feels expensive, but Fair Game has aged gracefully for the most part, which is a huge credit to the filmmakers. For those who enjoy old-fashioned revenge thrillers, this Aussie production should prove to be a satisfying sit.
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Transfer Quality
Video
As far as I can tell from information available online, Fair Game has long been an obscure title, relegated to poor quality VHS releases for years. Apparently the only DVD releases worldwide to date (before Umbrella's 2018 DVD release) were a German 2011 DVD, and a 2008 disc issued by Beyond Home Entertainment in Australia. But now, for the first time ever in the world, this Ozploitation movie is available to watch in remastered 1080p high definition on Blu-ray. According to Umbrella, Fair Game received a brand new transfer for its Blu-ray debut, which was struck from a newly restored 2K master. The source of the master remains unclear, and I therefore cannot be certain if a scan was performed of the original camera negative or an interpositive (or a release print), but the resulting image is very pleasing nevertheless - and it should satisfy anybody seeking an upgrade from their old DVD or VHS tape. In fact, it's better than I ever could have expected, which was a nice surprise. Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, the movie is mastered with a perfectly fine bitrate averaging just under 25 Mbps, and Umbrella have made use of a dual-layered BD-50 to maximise the video quality whilst ensuring that there's enough room for the extras. (The movie does only run a hair under 86 minutes.)
Fair Game's Blu-ray presentation looks organic from top to bottom, which should please film connoisseurs and videophiles but might turn off "grain haters." Grain is thankfully kept in-tact, and there are no signs of unnecessary digital tampering like edge enhancement or noise reduction. Admittedly, there is print damage - lines down the screen, hairs, white flecks and pieces of dirt dot the transfer on a frequent basis, which can create the feeling that you're watching a film print being projected at the cinema. Some instances of print damage are more noticeable than others, and of course your mileage will vary depending on your tolerance for such artefacts. In addition, the transfer does lack balance in certain darker scenes, but this probably traces back to the shooting conditions. These are about the only shortcomings of an otherwise fine video presentation, which will make you feel as if you're watching the movie for the first time all over again. It will be a revelation to those accustomed to watching pan-and-scanned VHS tapes. Of course, Fair Game doesn't look like a pristine new release and I doubt it could ever look considerably better, but considering the age of the movie, the budget, and its home release history, this is a pleasing HD transfer.
Like the '80s Ozploitation flick Dark Age (also available on Blu-ray from Umbrella), Fair Game was shot by the late Andrew Lesnie, and the photography therefore looks more polished compared to grungier exploitation movies. When the transfer is on, it's really on. Thanks to the smart encoding, grain consistently looks natural and well-resolved, ensuring that the video presentation retains a high level of detailing. Textures are pleasing, revealing every last minutiae to be seen on faces, clothing, environments and The Beast. It does look more like the master was created from an interpositive, as it doesn't have the refinement of an original camera negative scan, but of course the look could be traced back to the shooting conditions or the quality of the film stock. Still, the image does sparkle more often than not. Colours are nicely saturated throughout, with a noticeable push towards orange on skin-tones and the landscape, though the saturation can be a bit extreme at times. Certain shots do look a bit faded as well, and (as previously stated) the darker scenes don't fare as well. Nevertheless, the movie does leap off the screen when it's at its best, with pleasing contrast giving way to exceptional image depth, making this a huge step up compared to old VHS and DVD releases.
Certain viewers may wish to see a more thoroughly remastered video presentation devoid of print damage, but in my view, the transfer has plenty of character, and it's borderline perfect for a movie like this. Give me this organic-looking presentation over something more processed any day of the week. Considering how long it took Fair Game to be released on Blu-ray, I don't think there's any hope of the movie getting a 4K release, and therefore Umbrella's disc is welcome and worthwhile.
Unfortunately, no subtitles are available.
Video Ratings Summary
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Audio
Aside from the audio commentary, the disc's sole audio option is a lossless DTS-HD MA 2.0 track, which is fortunately stereo rather than mono. (Interestingly, the 2008 DVD reportedly contained a Dolby Digital 5.1 track, but I cannot comment on the quality of it, so I won't lose sleep over this stereo track.) Like the video, it's clear that the audio has been properly remastered and restored, and the lossless encoding is a treat. The audio is stable all the way through - I could not detect any hissing, sibilance issues, pops, clicks, drop-outs or sync problems, nor does the encoding ever give rise to any muffled dialogue. Of course, however, the track is still limited by the source, as the movie was recorded and mixed using equipment from the 1980s, but the movie still sounds better than expected on Blu-ray. It's definitely encouraging that Umbrella included lossless audio, which is a step up compared to Dark Age's lossy Dolby Digital track.
Barring a few moments which are presumably source-related, dialogue is clear and easy to comprehend, and prioritisation is never an issue. Ashley Irwin's almost omnipresent original score is certainly loud when it wants to be, and it comes through all available channels thanks to the stereo mixing, but it thankfully never overpowers the dialogue. This is an aggressive track to boot, with subwoofer activity to accentuate every gunshot, bullet hit, scream, explosion, and roar of The Beast's engine. Naturally, don't expect much surround activity - the use of the rear channels is perfunctory, acting as a slight extension of this front-centric presentation. Therefore, there are no panning effects, nor are sounds precisely placed within the soundscape. But again, this comes with the territory, and I would rather a faithful representation of the original source as opposed to a botched remix. All things considered, Fair Game sounds very good on Blu-ray, and fans of the movie should be pleased.
Audio Ratings Summary
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Extras
The main menu features pieces of scenes from the movie, as opposed to a montage - you probably won't want to hang around on the disc menu for long as a result. As with their other Ozploitation releases, Umbrella pulled out all the stops to create a comprehensive special features package. It's actually astounding to see so much behind-the-scenes footage here. There is 50Hz content, which means that overseas players and televisions may struggle to play certain extras. The disc could have been beautifully rounded out with a proper documentary and maybe any deleted material that exists (apparently the original cut of the movie ran nearly two hours), but considering what's been available previously, this is a commendable package.
Audio Commentary with Director Mario Andreacchio & Writer Rob George
The first extra on this disc is a feature-length audio commentary with director Mario Andreacchio and screenwriter Rob George, which is presented in lossy Dolby Digital 2.0. This is presumably the same commentary that was included on the 2008 DVD release from Beyond Home Entertainment. Unfortunately, there are frequent patches of dead space throughout as they simply watch the movie and struggle to figure out what to say. Indeed, the commentary amounts to minor, short anecdotes ("That's a real garage...") or comments ("Great scene!") being intermittently delivered. They proudly point out that the movie was created before the age of CGI, and everything was done for real. There are some interesting pieces of information, including a short story about the casting of Delaney, but these are few and far between. I really wish this was a better commentary, as the two men clearly enjoy just watching the movie (they probably hadn't seen it for some time prior to the recording) and don't have a great deal to say. It's a bit of a waste. This is by no means an essential listen.
Extended Interview with Cassandra Delaney from Not Quite Hollywood (HD; 15:24)
Misspelled as Cassandra Delany on the disc menu, here we have an extended interview with the lead actress of Fair Game, which was conducted by director Mark Hartley for his documentary Not Quite Hollywood. Delaney speaks about getting involved in the movie, her prior experiences in motion pictures, her experiences on Fair Game, and more. The interview is presented straight-up; there is no music, nor are there any cutaways. Angles do change, but it still feels overly static on the whole. Nevertheless, the information here is worthwhile. This looks to have been taken from an SD source, but it's encoded in 1080p.
On Location with Fair Game (HD; 3:39)
Visibly taken from a so-so quality VHS, this is a brief but worthwhile compilation of raw behind-the-scenes footage, set to the movie's soundtrack. This is encoded in 1080i, but the source is SD.
Behind the Scenes - 1985 TV Report From NWS9, Action News (HD; 00:36)
Another piece sourced from a VHS master (much worse quality than the last segment), this is a brief news report about Fair Game, revealing some behind-the-scenes footage from the shoot. Encoded in 1080i, but again this is taken from an SD source.
Behind the Scenes - 1985 TV Report From ADS-7, State Affair (HD; 2:21)
A longer news report about Fair Game (in appalling VHS quality) which reveals more behind-the-scenes footage and briefly discusses the project. Topics include selling the movie to overseas distributors and further planned projects by the production company. Despite the bad quality, this is still worthwhile. Like many of the other extras, the source is SD but it's encoded in 1080i.
Behind the Scenes with Dean Bennett (HD; 52:01)
Taken from a very rough SD video source (this was probably taken with an '80s-era VHS camcorder) and encoded in 1080i, this is an extensive collection of behind-the-scenes footage taken by Dean Bennett, who was invited to the set after impressing director Mario Andreacchio with a short film of his. This is presented straight-up - there is no music, nor are there interviews or commentary. This is raw fly-on-the-wall material which gives you a visceral idea what it was like to be on the set. The footage mostly covers the action sequences at the homestead, rather than just dialogue. Aside from the shoddy picture quality, this is a great find and a terrific inclusion. If you have the patience to sit through all of it, it's incredibly fascinating.
Theatrical Trailer (HD; 1:03)
Visibly remastered to a certain extent, this is the original theatrical trailer for the movie, encoded in 1080p. It's brief and to the point, and it's a nice inclusion to the disc.
Image Gallery (HD; 24:18)
There are nearly 100 images to see in this extensive photo gallery, for which you can either navigate manually or simply watch the (silent) slideshow. There's promotional artwork, video art, concept artwork, press materials, storyboards, movie stills, behind-the-scenes images, and more. Umbrella usually excel at creating these image galleries, and this is no exception. The images are all in crisp high definition and the extra is encoded in 1080p.
Storyboard (HD; 8:05)
Taken from a video source (with visible interlacing) and encoded in 1080i, this is a video presentation of storyboards, set to music. The effort is appreciated, though this extra is probably of limited interest to most.
Mario Andreacchio Short Films (HD; 89:30)
Another worthwhile inclusion to the disc for those interested, here we have a selection of five short movies that director Mario Andreacchio made in the 1980s before helming Fair Game. Four of the five shorts were shot on 16mm film stock, and the video presentation is understandably rough, littered with film artefacts and displaying faded colours. The movie that was shot on video - Under Pressure - looks even rougher. Not everything is natively mastered in HD - Vandalism is about the only movie that appears to be sourced from directly from a film scan, while the others look to be taken from video and even VHS sources. One supposes that these were the only surviving copies. Nevertheless, the presentation is encoded in 1080i. Included is:
- Vandalism (1981)
- Break-in (1983)
- Taken By Storm (1983)
- Abduction... Who's Next? (1984)
- Under Pressure (1986)
R4 vs R1
NOTE: To view
non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually
also NTSC compatible.
This is the first time the movie has been issued on Blu-ray anywhere in the world. It's a win for the Umbrella disc by default.
Summary
A visceral Australian action-thriller, Fair Game holds up - it's surprisingly competent and enjoyable all these years on. As a first-time viewer in 2018, I was impressed.
In their mission to properly bring as many Ozploitation movies to Blu-ray as possible, Fair Game has been remastered for its high definition debut, looking and sounding better than ever. It feels like watching a film print on the big screen at a cinema. The special features, meanwhile, are extensive - certainly the most extensive package ever compiled for this movie, and the most we're likely to ever receive. This is one for the Blu-ray shelf. Recommended.
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© Callum Knox (I studied biology)
Friday, March 16, 2018
| Review Equipment |
| DVD | LG UP970 4K UHD HDR Blu-ray Player, using HDMI output |
| Display | LG OLED65E6T.
This display device is 16x9 capable. This display device has a maximum native resolution of 2160p.
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| Audio Decoder | Built in to amplifier/receiver.
This audio decoder/receiver has not been calibrated.
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| Amplification | Samsung Series 7 HT-J7750W |
| Speakers | Samsung Tall Boy speakers, 7.1 set-up |
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