Not Quite Hollywood (2008)

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General		Extras
Category	Documentary	Main Menu Audio & Animation Audio Commentary-Mark Hartley and many others Introduction-Quentin Tarantino's pitch for NQH Introduction-John D. Lamond's pitch for NQH Theatrical Trailer-Not Quite Hollywood Theatrical Trailer-Huge Ozploitation Trailer Collection Gallery-Photos & Posters Interviews-Cast & Crew-Ozploitation Q & A at ACMI Audio Interview-Cast-Audio Only Interview with Richard Franklin Interviews-Cast-A Chat Between Quentin Tarantino & Brian Trenchard Smith Deleted Scenes-23 Deleted Scenes Easter Egg-Bob Ellis just loves Peter Weir...not Teaser Trailer-Madman Trailers
Rating
Year Of Production	2008
Running Time	98:47
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered Dual Disc Set	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Mark Hartley
Studio Distributor	Madman Entertainment	Starring	Quinten Tarantino Phillip Adams Brian Trenchard Smith John D. Lamond Antony I. Ginnane John Seale Roger Ward David Hannay Sandy Harbutt Jamie Blanks Graeme Blundell Russell Boyd Richard Brennan
Case	Slip Case
RPI	$29.95	Music	Stephen Cummings Billy Miller

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	Unknown	English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s) English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s) English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.78:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.78:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	None	Smoking	Yes
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	Yes

   "Peter Weir and these other more cultured directors have to acknowledge that without Bazza and without Alvin, without these vulgar films, we wouldn't really have an industry".  Phillip Adams.

    If you're a fan of Australian films on DVD, chances are you've probably already seen the work of Mark Hartley. Since 2003 Mark has been working as a freelance director with a leading DVD distributor to help deliver some outstanding presentations of Australian films on DVD. He has also worked closely with filmmakers to create relevant and informative special features to compliment these presentations. Given this background, it's hardly surprising that for his first theatrical feature film, Mark would choose to document a particular era and genre of Australian cinema. This genre concerns an important body of films made during the 70's and early 80's - an era that defined us culturally on screen (the good and the bad) and helped to rejuvenate the Australian film industry. It was a golden era for Australian cinema, mostly before the well intentioned, but seriously flawed 10BA film investment scheme was introduced by the Fraser Government in October 1980.

    This genre delivered an explosion of sex, violence, horror and hardcore action - often all of these rolled into one. On a commercial level, many were a very successful. Local audiences relished the opportunity to see exciting and audacious films made by Australians, with Australian actors, using local product (mainly cars and beer), in familiar locations.

    While many of these films have since been neglected and forgotten, retrospectively they have been reborn - thanks largely to DVD. Audiences can view these films either on a nostalgic level or for the first time, judging their cultural importance and their contribution to the history of Australian cinema. Mark Hartley's AFI Award winning documentary, Not Quite Hollywood pays tribute to this collection of films - a genre of Australian cinema we now proudly call, "Ozploitation".

    In their day, many of these ozploitation films were critically savaged for a variety of reasons. For the first time Australian filmmakers were displaying aspects of our culture in an open and forthright manner. This might have upset many conservatives, but a reasonable percentage of these films returned handsomely at the box office and they also supported a thriving drive-in market.

    In stark contrast to the ozploitation cinema, the 70's also produced some great Australian films on a more conventional and arthouse level. Films such as Picnic At Hanging Rock, The Devil's Playground, Sunday Too Far Away, Newsfront, My Brilliant Career and Caddie, were all made during the same era. The diversity of the films being produced in this country during this time was astounding and generally audience support remained enthusiastic. For an industry that really didn't exist only a few years before, the renaissance had finally arrived.

    Prior to 1971, film censorship in Australia was draconian to say the least. With no form of film classification, the chief censor held a highly conservative reign over every film screened in the country. Thankfully, in late 1971 some common sense finally brought about a system of classification and with it, the introduction of the R-certificate (people under 18yrs not admitted). This new system really gave filmmakers the chance to express themselves like never before and smash their conservative restraints.

    Not Quite Hollywood begins at the very rebirth of our film industry, conveying the era and genre with great vitality. There is a staggering eighty-three interviewees in the film, all of whom either played a key role in films of the genre or has been inspired by them. One of the major contributors is Quentin Tarantino, who is a massive fan of the genre and more knowledgeable on the subject than most Australians. Tarantino's enthusiasm contrasts well with the very droll, Bob Ellis, who has a "kind" word to say about everybody. These interviews are incorporated with remastered footage from over eighty documented films. Animated montages from still photographs compliment the production and emphasise the unpretentious nature of the documentary.

    The film is divided into three particular chapters, each covering a unique aspect of the genre. The first chapter is titled, Ockers, Knockers, Pubes & Tubes! This covers such romps as, Stork (1971), The Adventures of Barry McKenzie (1972) and the first Australian made film to receive a R rating, Alvin Purple (1973). The next chapter takes the more sinister tone of, Comatose Killers & Outback Chillers. This chapter takes in the supernatural and tales of terror films such as, Patrick (1978), Thirst (1978), Long Weekend (1978), Roadgames (1981) and Razorback (1984). The final chapter in the film is titled, High Octane Disasters & Kung Fu Masters! It goes without saying this chapter showcases the high action aspect of the genre. A small sample of these films include, one of my personal favourites, Stone (1974), Mad Dog Morgan (1976), The Man From Hong Kong (1975) and Mad Max (1979).

     Naturally, it's difficult to cover so many films in a little over ninety minutes. If I have one small criticism, it is the pace of the information tends to be a bit frantic at times. This is a documentary that would really benefit from a three hour cut (deleted scenes are included on the second disc). That said, Not Quite Hollywood still offers great nostalgia and reference for those of us old enough to remember the many wonderful Australian films produced during the seventies and early eighties. It is also a perfect introduction for younger audiences to this unique and exciting genre that not only embraced our culture, but helped pioneer our local film industry. Regardless of which group you belong to, Not Quite Hollywood is a significant social document and ninety-eight minutes of first class entertainment.

Video

    Not Quite Hollywood is presented in an aspect ratio of 1.77:1, which is 16x9 enhanced.

    The film material used in Not Quite Hollywood comes from a myriad of sources, so sharpness levels do vary. Thankfully though, many of these films have gone through restorations for DVD, so they appear fresh and vibrant on screen. Blacks were solid and shadow detail was consistent throughout the film.

    Colours were impressive, especially during the brilliant title sequence. All colours were perfectly balanced, with no adverse issues.

    There were no MPEG artefacts evident in the transfer. Keeping in mind the many different sources of film footage on display, I didn't find anything of great significance in terms of film-to-video artefacts and film artefacts.

    There are no subtitles available on this DVD.

    Both discs are DVD 9, dual layer discs. The layer change on disc one (the film disc) was easily noticed at 51:30.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    There are three audio tracks on the DVD, English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s), English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224 Kb/s) and English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0 (224 Kb/s).

    Dialogue quality was excellent and there were no obvious issues with audio sync.

    The original music in Not Quite Hollywood was written by Stephen Cummings and Billy Miller. Many will know Stephen as the frontman for 70's Australian band, Sports. There is also some non-original music used in the film. This music is courtesy of many well-known Australian bands including, Rose Tattoo, The Angels and Dragon, to name just a few.

    The surround channels were quite active throughout the film, giving great enhancement to music and the directional effects in many of the film clips.

    Likewise, the subwoofer was highly active, adding considerably to bass elements of music, gunshots and explosions.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Menu

The main menu has a clever drive-in theme with appropriate audio and animation. Naturally, it is also 16x9 enhanced.

Disc One Extras:

Audio Commentary - Mark Hartley, Brian Trenchard Smith, Antony I. Ginnane, David Hannay, Alan Finney, John D. Lamond, Roger Ward, Richard Brennan, Grant Page, Vincent Monton, Paul Harris and Justin King.

This "cast of twelve" commentary is full of insight and amusing anecdotes. It's almost like a second part to the documentary, offering even more information on many of the featured films. With so many people involved, it does get a little confusing at times as to who is actually speaking. But overall, the commentary is entertaining and it compliments Not Quite Hollywood on DVD.

Tarantino's Not Quite Hollywood Pitch (0:50)

Quentin Tarantino makes a studio pitch for Not Quite Hollywood .

Lamond's Not Quite Hollywood Pitch (0:31)

John D. Lamond makes his pitch

Theatrical Trailer

Not Quite Hollywood (2:12)

Disc Two Extras:

Ozploitation Trailer Collection

This is one of the largest trailer collections I've seen assembled on DVD. These trailers aren't just advertising propaganda, every trailer has relevance to Not Quite Hollywood and is properly categorised into its respective chapter. Unfortunately, each trailer can't be seen and selected from a menu. To find a particular trailer, you will need to scroll through using the "next" button on your remote control. There is a "play all" function available on the menu. The trailers are listed below in their chapter and order of appearance.

Chapter One - Ockers, Knockers, Pubes & Tubes! (50:19)

The Naked Bunyip, Stork, The Adventures of Barry McKenzie, Barry McKenzie Holds His Own, Alvin Purple, Alvin Rides Again, Petersen, The Love Epidemic, The True Story of Eskimo Nell, Plugg, The Box, Eliza Fraser, Fantasm, Fantasm Comes Again, The ABC of Love & Sex - Australian Style, Felicity, Pacific Banana, Centerspread, Melvin Son of Alvin.

Chapter Two - Comatose Killers & Outback Chillers (33:27)

Night Of Fear, Inn Of The Damned, Patrick, Long Weekend, Snapshot, Thirst, Harlequin, The Survivor, Dead Kids, Road Games, A Dangerous Summer, Next Of Kin, Razorback, Bloodmoon.

Chapter Three - High Octane Disasters & Kung Fu Masters! (36:51)

Stone, The Man From Hong Kong, Mad Dog Morgan, Mad Max, Stunt Rock, The Chain Reaction, The Race For The Yankee Zephyr, Turkey Shoot, Midnite Spares, BMX Bandits, The Return Of Captain Invincible, Frog Dreaming, Sky Pirates, Dead End Drive-In.

Madman Trailers

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall