Guests arrive at an expensive private guest house on a remote island near Sydney. The guest house and weird activities, like theatre sports and orienteering, are run by a leery eccentric.
As far as peter Weir goes, he is something of an Australian hero. Some call him an auteur, but let us just say hero. Few have done as much as him to bring attention to the Australian film industry (well, maybe Mel Gibson). Although he really broke out with "Picnic at Hanging Rock", this earlier attempt is much more fun and reminds the viewer of experimental, independent film not unlike that of other greats before their breakthroughs (Cronenberg, Cassavetes, etc.) Weir scholars have suggested this film also develops a theme that Weir would return to in the future: the institution and its push for conformity. Whether this was ever Weir's intention or not is unknown, but that is definitely an underlying message that could be gleaned...
As far as peter Weir goes, he is something of an Australian hero. Some call him an auteur, but let us just say hero. Few have done as much as him to bring attention to the Australian film industry (well, maybe Mel Gibson). Although he really broke out with "Picnic at Hanging Rock", this earlier attempt is much more fun and reminds the viewer of experimental, independent film not unlike that of other greats before their breakthroughs (Cronenberg, Cassavetes, etc.) Weir scholars have suggested this film also develops a theme that Weir would return to in the future: the institution and its push for conformity. Whether this was ever Weir's intention or not is unknown, but that is definitely an underlying message that could be gleaned...