Leofwine_draca Despite being extremely gory, this is a film that is never disturbing, thanks to the cheesy veneer which makes it impossible to take seriously. The movie is a highly ambitious Australian effort to jump on the futuristic bandwagon, taking place in a totalitarian society where 'thinkers' are sent to detention camps run by sadistic wardens. We get half an hour of the usual cruelty/murder/beatings by the guards before a select few inmates are set free and the film turns into a modern-day remake of THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME (although THE RUNNING MAN is a much similar modern-day effort; even the costumes are similar). Making effective use of the Australian outback locations, TURKEY SHOOT is a film that offers non-stop action and adventure, making it hard to dislike. I can only wish that all B-movies like this had such spirit and sensational pacing.The plot boils down to extended death scene after extended death scene. There are burnings, beating, shootings, and all manner of sadistic torture. Amid the escapees and the armed guards, we get hammily-accented British bad guys and even a werewolf (in great makeup) thrown into the mix for good measure! It's hard to see how the late David Hemmings ended up as an executive producer of this trash, but British director Brian Trenchard-Smith shoots a great movie and one of those rare offerings which really deliver the goods. The budget may be low, but this doesn't mean that special effects and explosions are left out; in fact this is one of the most effect-packed films I've seen in a long while, great fun if you don't mind the cheesy nature of them.For viewers who enjoy spotting faces, Turkey Shoot is a film with a diverse cast. Steve Railsback is as unlikable as always as the grim hero, but at least he's different from the rest in this way. The beautiful Olivia Hussey gets to act frightened all the while – you wonder why she's here – whilst the veteran villain is Brit Michael Craig. Yet I enjoyed the over-the-top turns of some of the villains, including ex-wrestler Roger Ward as a sadistic guard and the obese Noel Ferrier as one of the hunters. Other fun moments include an eye impaling inspired by ZOMBIE FLESH EATERS, bone-breaking, and people being crushed to death. The sexy Lynda Stoner acts as the third 'turkey' whilst typecast Australian oddball John Ley is the most unfortunate character of the film. Still, it's hard to concentrate on the cast when the film offers this much gratuitous violence, action, and engaging thrills and spills… this is a B-movie to buy!

Scott LeBrun "Excess is what makes life worth living." That seems to have been the motto for the people behind this wild and crazy Ozploitation action flick. In a world of a not-too-distant future, the government seeks to keep everybody in line, forbidding people to say anything against them. Among those picked up is Paul Anders (Steve Railsback), who tries to reach others over the radio. Even completely innocent citizens like Chris Walters (Olivia Hussey) *will* get snatched if they so much as defend a person being beaten. They're all taken to "re-education" camps like the one we see in this movie.Five of the prisoners get picked out for participating in a "turkey shoot", wherein they will be stalked by the camp master (Michael Craig) and his cronies. If they can survive for a certain amount of time, they will supposedly earn their freedom.Director Brian Trenchard-Smith has said that he liked to sometimes explore serious ideas in wacky ways. And so it is with this umpteenth variation on "The Most Dangerous Game", in which political subtext mixes with pure, straightforward entertainment. And what entertainment it is. It's thoroughly trashy, extremely fast paced, and genuinely exciting. The heroic characters tend to get overshadowed by the effectively loathsome villains. Craig (whose character is not named Thatcher for nothing), Roger Ward as swaggering head guard Ritter, Noel Ferrier as Secretary Mallory, Michael Petrovitch as slimy Tito, and sultry Carmen Duncan as the depraved Jennifer all register strongly.Adding to the fun factor is the presence of a "circus freak" character named Alph. Played by Steve Rackman, he looks like a reject from an "Island of Dr. Moreau" movie, and tears off peoples' toes and eats them. The fact that he's here is no better way to say, "Look, this is one of *those* movies. Deal with it."The violence is so wonderfully potent that folks are doing themselves a disservice if they see the heavily cut American release titled "Escape 2000". Do yourselves a favour and see the original 94 minute Australian feature under the "Turkey Shoot" title. That way, you see all the delicious over the top splatter in all its glory.Supremely diverting for aficionados of trash from Down Under.Eight out of 10.

videorama-759-859391 Certainly something for it's time, this guilty trashy little pleasure, is great for you gorehounds, thanks to those score of sickeningly and memorable scenes in the R version. Disliked by most of it's cast, who excel in the acting states, really giving their characters what they deserve in a 10/10 effort, Turkey Shoot is like The Running Man, except it's shot in the tropical balmy forests of Cairns, Australia. Made the same year as the Kiwi sci fi future pic, Battletruck, set in post 1994, here this stories set in 1995, a great year, especially for movies if I do say so myself. Deviants: the good guys, rebels, basically a conflicting party who are trying to expose the truth, about the evil forces of dictatorship, who rule with an iron and ruthless hand, are caught and are sent to this sort of torture prison camp, which they must earn their freedom, which of course will never be given. To pass the time for entertainment value, a score of deviants are chosen, where they are let loose in the forest, half an hour between each other, and are hunted down by our bad dudes, led by the merciless prison director, Thatcher (a fine Michael Craig, who like every other performer, impresses and never slacks). Of course the freed score are really just sitting ducks, yes, defenseless as turkeys, set up for their own demise, all in the name of sick entertainment, so the suspense and thrill factor is minimal through the whole hunt. The baddies just appear and take out their objectives. Carmen Duncan, especially, is a nasty piece of work, as a femme fatale, sadistic lesbian hunter, deadly with a bow an arrow. Trivia note: Actress and environmentalist, Lynda Stoner who plays sexy prisoner Rita, wouldn't each raw fish, so fake fish had to be brought in. Pity we didn't see her in other films, as she had the goods, to further her career, and attracts the likes of Hollywood, may'be. Of course, being an exploitation movie, we aren't surprised by the familiar names associated with it, including the actors. This is total trashy junk for the mind's eye, a popcorn flick, just as we love em, where the over top violence adds extra topping to what some people would consider one of the worst Oz films made, period, while many others have developed a cult liking for it, as with Trenchard's other great other set piece The Man From Hong Kong, and to a lesser extent, Dead End Drive in. The truth be known, I love all these flicks, but their all so bad/good popcorn movies, only this one is particularly bad, despite it's tight script of some bloody great dialogue, but the violence is sickeningly ugly, where other moments are just ugly, at the hands of some of the vile dictators, Roger Ward's performance I'll never forget, as also the disguised Steve Rackman as a half human, half monster badarse, looking like Mr Hyde, in those old drink driving ads, you know the one where his eyes light up with emerald green. Each actor is just as great as each other, truly and our two American imports are fantastic too. Just take Turkey Shoot for what's it worth, a mind numbing trashy cinema delight, yet one BLOODY bad movie too.

the_wolf_imdb This movie is really not bright, not clever and even very naive. It tries to show "brutality of future totalistic camp" but it pales in comparison to harsh reality of real communistic and Nazi camps. In comparison to them this camp looks like holiday resort (except maybe for the "gasoline football").As a show that could teach the viewer something about survival it sucks hard. Basically, the "heroes" do almost everything wrong. The movie may act a a tutorial "how not to survive the turkey shoot". How a man can, for example, to lose firefight against the bow equipped woman when he has automatic rifle with a scope? He never tries to "camp and snipe" which would be probably the most efficient solution here. He never even tries to cover himself with suppressive fire. He just plays a target. Uh.These "heroes" do almost everything wrong - they try to run from the car on open area. The "hero" tries to run from a guy with a rifle with a scope on a rocky waterfall (yes it was pretty but you can hardly invent more stupid solution when there are woods all around). The heroes seem to be unable to stay still when the enemies are around so even if they try to hide it never works.The woman hero has enough time to enjoy relaxing bath instead of using mud for camouflage - and of course not a single hero ever trues to actually use any camouflage so they run in yellow pajamas in mostly gray and brown area. In communistic countries there were basic lessons for kids how to move in the environment unnoticed so I guess that every 10 years old would have better chance to survive the hunt. The heroes seem to like open spaces and running here in pairs hand in hand as they would be playing in the kindergarten.So - the movie is less than useful as a realistic lesson how to survive the hunt. It is just nasty, unrealistic and incoherent fun. Not particularly bright, violent, incoherent but somehow watchable.