Nerdly » ‘Two Heads Creek’ VOD Review

01st Jul2020

‘Two Heads Creek’ VOD Review

by Phil Wheat

Stars: Kerry Armstrong, Kathryn Wilder, Gary Sweet, Stephen Hunter, Jordan Waller, Kevin Harrington, Don Bridges, Helen Dallimore, Madekaine Nunn, Anna Tolputt, Danxia Yang, Rob Sheean, David Adlam, Kasha Bajor | Written by Jordan Waller | Directed by Jesse O’Brien

After the death of their adoptive mother, shy butcher Norman and his drama queen twin sister Annabelle leave the UK and adventure to Australia in search of their biological mother, but the local townsfolk of Two Heads Creek are hiding a dark secret… but aren’t they all when it comes to small towns in horror movies?

Australia and New Zealand have a fine tradition of mixing comedy and horror to superb effect. Be it the early work of Peter Jackson such as Bad Taste and Brain Dead, or more recent efforts such as Primal and The Loved Ones, horror from down under always seems to walk a very fine line be laughs and scares, and Two Heads Creek is no different.

A pitch-black horror comedy, Two Heads Creek reminded me a LOT of the 2012 film 100 Bloody Acres (another horror-comedy from down under). Both films are filled with oddball characters and off-kilter comedy, whilst evoking similarities to the backwoods hillbilly horror seen in the 70s and early 80s US cinema, most noticeably The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (with which both films shares the idea of humans as “meat”). However Two Heads Creek stands head and shoulders – pardon the pun – above 100 Bloody Acres, mainly by going completely bonkers in terms of both characterisation and shoulders, pardon the pun, above 100 Bloody Acres, mainly by going completely bonkers in terms of both characterisation and story – it almost feels at times like the filmmakers really are channeling Bad Taste era Peter Jackson. Seriously!

Penned by actor Jordan Waller, who plays Norman, Two Heads Creek is INCREDIBLY gory. It might take its time to get there but when the gore comes it certainly doesn’t let up – from the cannibalistic “Australia Day” feast to the Big Boy 3000, a machine that looks just like the pie-making machine in Chicken Run, only this one doesn’t make chicken pies – instead it chews up and spits out humans, mincing them into a pulp in gloriously gory fashion!

Two Heads Creek is also ridiculously politically incorrect, with the townsfolk of the titular creek only killing and eating one particular kind of victim… all in the name of immigration control. And that’s only the tip of the dark, dark humour of the film, which takes no prisoners in its quest for a laugh in the face of sheer terror. It’s a fine line betwixt the two but Two Heads Creek walks it perfectly, with the cast throwing themselves into the story with aplomb – acting over the top when required but pulling back the reigns on the madness when the story requires.