Black Sheep

Tonight I saw the NZ film "Black Sheep".

"An experiment in genetic engineering turns harmless sheep into blood-thirsty killers that terrorise a sprawling New Zealand farm."

It's a shlock-horror zombie flick, and I was really hoping it would be as good as "Shaun of the Dead" - but that was asking a bit much.

It's amusing, with plenty of clever lines, plus some more obvious sex-with-sheep jokes, and an obsession with fart jokes (which was unexpected).

It's over-the-top gory, in the style of the early Peter Jackson films "Bad Taste" and "Braindead". For example, when a sheep tears out the intestines of a human victim, the camera doesn't pan away - we get to see EVERYTHING. I have a high tolerance for that sort of thing, but even I was wishing I hadn't eaten dinner before seeing the movie.

The special effects and creature designs are AMAZING, and they're one of the the main reasons I wanted to see the film. They were done by Weta Workshop, who did the effects for the Lord of the Rings films.

It's really beautifully filmed too - yet another film showcasing New Zealand's natural beauty. I have to go there!

I think what let it down was the acting - very wooden, especially from Danielle Mason, who played the female lead. Every time she spoke I just wanted her to shut the hell up! She wasn't believable at all.

And it's also not really scary. Just gory. Oh so very gory.

But I'm glad I saw it - my curiosity is satisfied. However I'm also glad that I didn't pay to see it - I won tickets from Triple J...