Summary
An Australian alien invasion film that punches above its weight while wearing its influences on its sleeves. Just tell us that our suburb makes it, ok?
Genre film fans in Australia haven’t had it this good since the heyday of Ozploitation. Director/co-writer Luke Sparke, who brought us the very local horrors of Red Billabong a few years ago, aims a little higher with his latest indie effort. Quite literally shooting for the stars, this is the kind of movie that might rewire some of our thinking on what constitutes ‘Australian cinema.’
OCCUPATION takes place in another small country town, where the biggest concern is who will win the local footy match between the Dropbears and the Kookaburras. Following a head injury, Matt (Dan Ewing) returns to the game, facing his bitter rival Jackson (Charles Terrier). Meanwhile Peter (Temuera Morrison) and his daughter Isabella (Izzy Stevens) are passing through town. Their stories all intersect when aliens invade Earth. After running for their lives, the remaining humans slowly band together to form the resistance.
Sparke really took the adage ‘go big or go home’ to heart. Except he went big and stayed home. Where the wonderful My Pet Dinosaur transformed Australia into Anytown USA, Sparke embraces the Australianess of his backdrop as he did with Red Billabong. Wearing his cinematic influences on his sleeve, from Independence Day to Predator, his script (which also has Felix Williamson credited on additional dialogue) doesn’t stray too far from the path. It’s basically Tomorrow When the Star War Began.
Although the tropes and character archetypes may be familiar, this level of local representation in the genre is less common. As we learn a little bit more about the aliens, the plot is just as much about the interplay between these heroes as it is about the invasion. Tension comes from a desire to torture and punish captured aliens from Jackson’s camp, while Matt’s girlfriend Amelia (Stephany Jacobsen) urges him to take a higher ground. With the later introduction of a military presence, coupled with the internment of enslaved humans, it’s not hard to see a bit of political commentary in Sparke’s film either.
Sparke brings back his leading man from Red Billabong, alongside a cast of new and familiar faces. Sparke is to be praised for his diverse cast, giving time to develop Jacobsen and Stevens characters in particular. An extended cameo from Jacqueline Mckenzie as an army colonel is worth the price of admission alone.
Of course, it’s the special effects that make or break an endeavour like this. While regularly punching above its budget, Sparke and Tony O’Loughlan (Drive Hard) use SFX shots judiciously. Coloured lights that first mark the appearance of the invaders, making the reveal of a massive suborbital vessel all the more breathtaking. The aliens themselves are a slick design, genuinely frightening – at least until they take their helmets off.
While OCCUPATION can be as cheesy as hell, right down to an Iowa Jima-esque Aussie flag raising, but that’s kind of the point, isn’t it? Pre-production has already begun on a sequel, so it’s no surprise that the final act sets up all the elements for future installments. If it’s as fun as this, then bring it on. Besides: if Sydney Harbour gets destroyed, what will happen to property values?
2018 | Australia | DIRECTOR: Luke Sparke | WRITERS: Luke Sparke, Felix Williamson | CAST: Dan Ewing, Temuera Morrison, Charles Terrier, Rhiannon Fish, Zachary Garred | DISTRIBUTOR: Pinnacle Films (AUS) | RUNNING TIME: 119 minutes | RELEASE DATE: 12 May 2018 (AUS)
