Fair Game (1986)- Review
86 Minutes, Rated R
Written by Rob George
Directed by Mario Andreacchio
Synopsis:
A bonafide Aussie classic, one that would later inspire Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof, Fair Game is a wild revenge triller set in the outback pitting Cassandra Delaney’s wildlife sanctuary boss against three psycho kangaroo hunters. Bored with killing kangaroos, they decide to kill the animals in the sanctuary, and when they see how attractive the owner is, they decide to have a little “fun” with her, too. Turns out that they may get a bit more “fun” than they bargained for.
Okay, so this is not the 1995 bomb of the same name starring William “Billy” Baldwin and Cindy Crawford; let’s be clear about that up front.
Nope; let’s go back to the 1980s and a good old-fashioned exploitation film. The great thing about exploitation films is that they don’t really have to make any sense in the real world, and only barely enough sense to hold together in the fictional world they’re depicting.
Thanks to Dark Star Pictures for somehow getting Fair Game pulled up from wherever it had been hiding for this re-release. Good job, folks!
Now, I don’t know what it is about Australian movies, but they certainly have a very distinctive flavor, and Fair Game is no exception. Heck, this film looks like it could have taken place about 3 years before the original Mad Max in post-apocalyptic chronology as it relates to societal behaviors and vehicle construction.
The language and vernacular (almost-but-not-quite American English, lol) of Aussie movies is always a fun time.
It’s shot pretty well, though, I must admit. There are some interesting camera angles and compositional choices, though in the end, it all comes down to the script.
And at least Fair Game has a protagonist who is not only beautiful enough to draw in the psychopaths who terrorize her (and do everything to her except explicitly rape her, though it’s entirely possible they did, and we weren’t shown it), but also resourceful enough to realistically (within the confines of the film, of course) mount a defense of herself and her land.
Cassandra Delaney is really effective playing our heroine, while our villains are appropriately silly and menacing.
Sure, movies like this are chock-a-block full of poor and even stupid choices, and Fair Game is no exception in that regard.
But the action is great, and it’s fun to grab a chance to look back at what movies used to be before huge budgets and CGI everything.
A simple, basic story told with simple, basic tools.
Almost like what most of us want from our films.
Weird, right?
Grab some popcorn. You’re gonna love it.
Fair Game opened theatrically on July 8 and on Digital July 12. A physical release is scheduled for sometime in August 2022 (and I know I wouldn’t be upset to have one show up in my mailbox), so keep your eyes peeled for that.
Fair Game stars Cassandra Delaney, Peter Ford, David Sandford, Garry Who, and Don Barker.
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