Savage Island Movie Review

Wow. Can you believe I watched this damned thing twice in one night? I was lucky to have a great bottle of wine and some wise-cracking friends to ease the pain (of course they are the reason I watched it twice so I guess I was lucky to have a great bottle of wine). Anyway, I was actually torn about this one. It had the potential to be much better. Too bad it wasn't. Here's the lowdown: Julia and her husband, Steven are visiting her parents on an island with their baby, Alex. When they first arrive, they meet the squatter neighbors (the Savages).

How is that for an in-your-face character clue? *snicker* Later that evening, Julia's pot-smoking brother accidentally runs over one of the in-bred young'uns. The patriarch of the Savage clan consequently pays them a visit demanding Alex in return. Seems fair to me. They refuse to give up the baby so bad stuff ensues. The in-breds attempt to kidnap the baby, they hold Peter hostage in order to get him, folks get killed, etc.

But what I want to know is this: are we supposed to begin rooting for the rednecks? Because I did. Steven was a spineless, useless, insensitive jerk that never wanted to have sex with his wife. When he attempted to rescue her from the Savages, I got pissed. They really didn't seem all that bad. But I had been drinking so who knows? Anyway, there were a couple of good twists, some more stuff and then the ending which was pretty predictable. They almost made it worth my while but not quite. But I have seen much worse.
 
The Acting  
I waffled back and forth about the acting a lot as well. The characters couldn't seem to make up their minds who they wanted to be. One minute they would be cool and fun, then they would be uptight and bitchy. They had more mood swings than I do. The only consistent character was Peter and he was consistently smoking pot. 

Special FX  
Nope. All they did was sling around a little blood and go for the axe-to-the-back routine. I am afraid that Steve Martin's arrow-to-the-head gag is more believable. 

The Directing  
I just have a little advice. Please make your characaters pick one personality and use it (unless they are filming Sybil). Also, please make it clear whose side we are supposed to be on. I doubt I should have been rooting for the rednecks, but the others sucked so much I wanted them to lose. If you want me to follow, you must be a good leader. 

Camera Work 
Okay, this was bad. Half the movie was in grainy night-shot and the other half was regular camcorder. It was like they stopped off on the way home from a birthday party to make a movie. Arrgh! NO NIGHT SHOT! The only thing worse than a grainy picture is a grainy picture with a green tint. And when I say grainy, I am not kidding. I was trying to adjust my rabbit ears (not really). Also, the camera man seemed to be jumping up and down from time to time. Maybe he was falling asleep from boredom. 

Sound & Audio  
Ha! The 'original' music sounded remarkably Aerosmith-ish at times. The dubbing was worse than a Kung Fu movie. And pay special attention to the closing credits song. What the Hell is that? Whatever it is, it does not go. Much like the rest of this pitiful pain in my ass. 

Review by MovieMaven
http://www.horror-movies.ca