NEXT OF KIN

One of the great treasures of the Ozploitation wave, NEXT OF KIN is “SUSPIRIA Down Under”, expertly blending a ghost story, a psychological thriller, a giallo and the desolate Outback’s inherent spookiness to create Australia’s most criminally underseen genre film.

Bolstered by a superb slice of pulsating film scoring from ex-Tangerine Dreamer Klaus Schulze, we follow a young woman who, after inheriting a large rural estate that doubles as a rest home, starts to experience terrifying visions straight out of her deceased mother’s diary.

As director Tony Williams effortlessly glides us around the cavernous confines of this abode with an eerie Steadicam eye, one might catch echoes of THE SHINING -- but NEXT OF KIN holds more in common with early Michael Mann efforts like THE KEEP, as it balances Gothic trappings with a beautifully naturalistic backdrop. And, in its final fifteen, Williams turns on the burn to blast-level, delivering one of the greatest batshit-crazy finales you’ve never seen. You’ll really want to see this movie.