Coffin Rock

Last updated

Coffin Rock
Movie coffin rock.jpg
Theatrical film poster
Directed byRupert Glasson
Written byRupert Glasson
Produced byAyisha Davies
David Lightfoot
Starring Lisa Chappell
Robert Taylor
Sam Parsonson
CinematographyDavid Foreman
Edited byAdrian Rostirolla
Music byJohn Gray
Production
company
Head Gear Films
Distributed byUltra Films
Release date
  • 22 October 2009 (2009-10-22)
Running time
92 minutes [1]
CountryAustralia
LanguageEnglish
Box officeA$31,312 (Australia) [2]

Coffin Rock is an Australian melodramatic thriller film [3] directed by Rupert Glasson and produced by David Lightfoot. The movie stars Lisa Chappell, Robert Taylor and Sam Parsonson.

Contents

Plot

Rob (Robert Taylor) and Jessie (Lisa Chappell) are a married couple who are trying to start a family without any success. Rob is reluctant to seek medical help, which leaves Jessie frustrated at being childless. After a drunken night at a bar with her friend, Jessie returns home upset to find a drifter, Evan (Sam Parsonson), is there with a baby kangaroo. This stirs emotions in Jessie, and she turns her affections towards him in a moment of unhappiness. This one time encounter results in brief sex. Though she asks him to stop midway, he continues on.

Evan becomes increasingly obsessed with her and begins to stalk her. Later Jessie discovers she is pregnant, not knowing for sure who the father is. On discovering she is pregnant she tells her husband, who in turn tells his friends, and the news spreads through the town to the drifter Evan who knows he could be the father. This intensifies his obsession for her and his violence toward others. Motivations to Evan's behavior are hinted at through delusional phone calls to his dead father, whom Evan is revealed to have killed.

After Jessie repeatedly rejects him, Evan knocks Rob unconscious and kidnaps Jessie. After several failed attempts, Jessie manages to escape from Evan and leaves him for dead after crashing the car. Rob, who has learned that he may not be the father, arrives just as Evan is about to attack Jessie. Consumed by guilt, Jessie stands in the middle of the road and closes her eyes. Rob swerves to avoid her and strikes Evan with his car, rescuing his wife. In the final scenes, Rob learns from a fertility clinic that he is not infertile, and Jessie burns the baby cradle that they bought.

Cast

Release

Coffin Rock premiered at the 2009 London FrightFest Film Festival. [4] The film had a limited release at Australian cinemas on 22 October 2009 before being released on DVD. On 13 January 2010, IFC films released the movie in the United States On-demand, [5] but it was later released on 3 February [6] as Video on Demand. [7]

The film is also available on Blu-ray in Australia, released by Pinnacle Films/All Interactive Distribution. A German Blu-ray is also available.

Reception

Rotten Tomatoes, a review aggregator, reports that 70% of 20 surveyed critics gave the film a positive review; the average rating was 6/10. [8] Simon Foster of the Special Broadcasting Service rated it 3.5/5 stars and said that the film "offers up exemplary work by all involved, both in front of and behind the camera" but "falls back on the clichés of the genre occasionally". [3] Bloody Disgusting rated the film 3/5 stars and said, "Although, not an outstanding film, Coffin Rock does have much to recommend it." [9] Gareth Jones of DreadCentral rated the film 2.5/5 stars and called it a "distinctly average psycho-stalker flick". [10] Nigel Floyd of Time Out London rated the film 3/5 stars and said that "the well-crafted characterisation, slow-burning tension and credible situations" of the first half eventually turn into "hysterical excess". [11] Kim Newman of Empire rated the film 3/5 stars and said, "The set-up is deceptively low-key, but the second and third acts deliver textbook suspense and horror." [12] Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian rated it 2/5 stars and called it a "nasty, intermittently effective psychological thriller" that is "generic and workmanlike". [13]

Accolades

AwardCategorySubjectResult
ASE Award Best Editing in a Feature FilmAdrian RostirollaNominated
Chicago International Film Festival Gold Hugo – After Dark CompetitionRupert GlassonNominated
Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival Narcisse Award for Best Feature FilmNominated

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Survival of the Dead</i> 2009 horror film by George A. Romero

Survival of the Dead is a 2009 horror film written and directed by George A. Romero and starring Alan van Sprang, Kenneth Welsh and Kathleen Munroe. It is the sixth entry in Romero's Night of the Living Dead series. The story follows a group of AWOL National Guardsmen who briefly appeared in Diary of the Dead.

<i>The Hamiltons</i> 2006 American film

The Hamiltons is an independent 2006 horror film directed by the Butcher Brothers. Cory Knauf stars as a teenager who must decide whether to help the victims that his older siblings have kidnapped.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jaume Balagueró</span> Spanish film director

Jaume Balagueró Bernat is a Spanish film director widely known for his horror films, most notably the acclaimed REC series.

<i>Blood Creek</i> 2009 film

Blood Creek is a 2009 American supernatural horror thriller film directed by Joel Schumacher and written by David Kajganich. It stars Dominic Purcell and Henry Cavill as brothers on a mission of revenge who become trapped in a harrowing occult experiment dating back to the Third Reich. The film had a limited theatrical release on September 18, 2009.

<i>Piranha 3D</i> 2010 film by Alexandre Aja

Piranha 3D is a 2010 American 3D horror comedy film that serves as a remake of the comedy horror film Piranha (1978) and an entry in the Piranha film series. Directed by Alexandre Aja and written by Pete Goldfinger and Josh Stolberg, the film stars Elisabeth Shue, Adam Scott, Jerry O'Connell, Ving Rhames, Jessica Szohr, Steven R. McQueen, Christopher Lloyd and Richard Dreyfuss. During spring break on Lake Victoria, a popular waterside resort, an underground tremor releases hundreds of prehistoric, carnivorous piranhas into the lake. Local cop Julie Forester must join forces with a band of unlikely strangers—though they are badly outnumbered—to destroy the ravenous creatures before everyone becomes fish food.

<i>After.Life</i> 2009 American film

After.Life is a 2009 American psychological horror-thriller film directed by Agnieszka Wójtowicz-Vosloo from her original screenplay. It stars Liam Neeson, Christina Ricci, and Justin Long.

<i>Lake Mungo</i> (film) 2008 Australian horror film

Lake Mungo is a 2008 Australian psychological horror film written and directed by Joel Anderson. Presented in the mockumentary format with elements of found footage and docufiction, it follows a family trying to come to terms with the loss of their daughter Alice after she drowns and the potentially supernatural events they experience after it.

<i>The Ward</i> (film) 2010 American film

The Ward is a 2010 American supernatural psychological horror film directed by John Carpenter and starring Amber Heard, Mamie Gummer, Danielle Panabaker, Laura-Leigh, Lyndsy Fonseca and Jared Harris. Set in 1966, the film chronicles a young woman who is institutionalized after setting fire to a house, and who finds herself haunted by the ghost of a former inmate at the psychiatric ward. As of 2024, this is Carpenter's most recent film as a director.

<i>Dread</i> (film) 2009 British film

Dread is a 2009 British horror film directed and written by Anthony DiBlasi and starring Jackson Rathbone, Shaun Evans and Hanne Steen, based on the short story of the same name by Clive Barker. The story was originally published in 1984 in volume two of Barker's Books of Blood short story collections.

<i>Rampage</i> (2009 film) 2009 Canadian film

Rampage is a 2009 action film written and directed by Uwe Boll and starring Brendan Fletcher, Michael Paré, Shaun Sipos and Lynda Boyd. It received a theatrical release in Germany, though was released direct-to-video in the rest of the world. It was Boll's first film to gain mainly positive reviews. The film was followed by two sequels Rampage: Capital Punishment (2014) and Rampage: President Down (2016).

Sam Parsonson is an Australian actor. He made his television debut at the age of 15 in the critically acclaimed Australian drama series Love My Way for two seasons. His performance in the role of Dylan earned him a nomination for a Logie Award for Most Outstanding Young Talent in 2007.. He went on to appear in the channel 7 drama 'Headland'. His other television credits include All Saints and children's television series Double Trouble.

<i>Hatchet II</i> 2010 American film

Hatchet II is a 2010 American slasher film written and directed by Adam Green. It is the sequel to Hatchet and the second installment in the titular film series. Picking up right where the first film ended, Hatchet II follows Marybeth as she escapes the clutches of the deformed, swamp-dwelling killer Victor Crowley. After learning the truth about her family's connection to the hatchet-wielding madman, Marybeth returns to the Louisiana swamps along with an army of hunters to recover the bodies of her family and exact the bloodiest revenge against the bayou butcher.

<i>Deadheads</i> (film) 2011 American film

Deadheads is a 2011 American zombie comedy film co-directed, co-written, and co-produced by Brett Pierce and Drew T. Pierce. It stars Michael McKiddy and Ross Kidder as sentient zombies who go on a road trip.

<i>The Scarehouse</i> 2014 Canadian film

The Scarehouse is a 2014 Canadian horror film directed by Gavin Michael Booth. It stars Sarah Booth and Kimberly-Sue Murray as two women who seek revenge against their former sorority.

<i>Jug Face</i> 2013 American film

Jug Face is a 2013 American horror film written and directed by Chad Crawford Kinkle and starring Sean Bridgers, Lauren Ashley Carter, Larry Fessenden, Sean Young and Daniel Manche. The story follows a teen (Carter), who is pregnant with her brother's child and tries to escape from a backwoods community, only to discover that she must sacrifice herself to a creature in a pit.

<i>Big Driver</i> (film) American TV series or program

Big Driver is a 2014 American crime thriller television film based on the novella of the same name by Stephen King, published in his collection Full Dark, No Stars (2010). It was directed by Mikael Salomon and written by Richard Christian Matheson.

<i>Kristy</i> (film) 2014 American film

Kristy is a 2014 American horror thriller film directed by Oliver Blackburn and starring Haley Bennett and Ashley Greene. The plot follows a college student who stays on campus alone over Thanksgiving break and finds herself terrorized by a cult of ritual killers. The film premiered on October 14, 2014, at the London Film Festival and also had theatrical releases internationally. In the United States, the film debuted on Lifetime on October 17, 2015, and was released on Netflix on November 5, 2015.

<i>Ritual</i> (2013 film) 2013 American film

Ritual is a 2013 American horror film written and directed by Mickey Keating. It stars Lisa Summerscales and Dean Cates as a married couple who must deal with a murderous cult. It was released in the United States on December 31, 2013.

<i>Tank 432</i> 2015 film

Tank 432 is a 2015 British psychological horror film written and directed by Nick Gillespie. Gillespie had previously collaborated with Ben Wheatley, who executive produced. Rupert Evans, Deirdre Mullins, Steve Garry, Michael Smiley, April Pearson, and Gordon Kennedy, Tom Meeten, and Alex March star. Evans, Mullins, Garry, Smiley, Kennedy, Meeten portray mercenaries tasked with transporting a hostage (Pearson) and survivor (March) across a battlefield. Along the way, the mercenaries become trapped in an abandoned armoured personnel carrier they enter as refuge against an unseen enemy. It premiered at the Fantasia International Film Festival.

References

  1. ↑ Celluloid Screams in the UK at Sheffield's first Horror Fest! Archived 13 November 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ↑ "Australian Films at the Australian Box Office" (PDF). Film Victoria . Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 February 2014. Retrieved 12 November 2012.
  3. 1 2 Foster, Simon (5 October 2009). "Coffin Rock review". Special Broadcasting Service . Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  4. ↑ Barton, Steve (3 September 2009). "Event Report: Film4 Frightfest 2009". DreadCentral . Retrieved 24 November 2013.
  5. ↑ Miska, Brad (1 December 2009). "IFC Acquires 'Coffin Rock' and 'Paintball' – Release Info". Bloody Disgusting . Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  6. ↑ Barton, Steve (2 February 2010). "Exclusive Premiere: Coffin Rock Trailer". Dread Central . Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  7. ↑ Miska, Brad (3 February 2010). "Trailer Debut for Aussie Thriller 'Coffin Rock', Now OnDemand". Bloody Disgusting . Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  8. ↑ "Coffin Rock". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved 24 November 2013.
  9. ↑ "Coffin Rock (V)". Bloody Disgusting . 6 September 2009. Retrieved 24 November 2013.
  10. ↑ Jones, Gareth (8 September 2009). "Coffin Rock (2009)". DreadCentral . Retrieved 24 November 2013.
  11. ↑ Floyd, Nigel (20 October 2009). "Coffin Rock". Time Out London . Retrieved 24 November 2013.
  12. ↑ Newman, Kim. "Coffin Rock". Empire . Retrieved 24 November 2013.
  13. ↑ Bradshaw, Peter (22 October 2009). "Coffin Rock". The Guardian . Retrieved 24 November 2013.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.