100 Bloody Acres

This is a clip from the Australian horror-comedy 100 Bloody Acres (Cameron Cairnes and Colin Cairnes, 2013). 

Brothers Reg (Damon Herriman) and Lindsay Morgan (Angus Sampson) run a unique organic fertiliser business. An important customer is waiting for a delivery and the small business operators need a fresh supply of their 'secret ingredient' to process the order.

Complications arise when Reg picks up three young people (Anna McGahan, Oliver Ackland and Jamie Kristian) on their way to a music festival, stranded by their broken-down vehicle.

In this clip, the three young people have been tied up while older brother Lindsay tries to work out what to do. 'It's a very stressful time for all of us', he says, which is hilarious given the circumstances.

The all-pervading sense of menace is well conceived and wonderfully shot by cinematographer John Brawley in the darkness of the barn.

The twisted brotherly affection and fear between Lindsay and Reg bubbles under the surface and is effectively conveyed through good direction and slick editing, as well as the performances.

The offbeat humour balances the film's dark premise – the brothers see themselves as small business operators facing a supply problem when they run out of dead car crash victims to add to their 'organic' fertiliser and start to look for alternatives sources.

100 Bloody Acres is the feature debut of writer-directors Cameron and Colin Cairnes who, like fellow Australian directors Michael and Peter Spierig, are brothers with a love of the horror genre.