The Island (1985)

Slasher films were a dime a dozen in the mid-‘80s. Wannabe franchise villains were popping out of video games, movie screens and 976 numbers to steal some of Jason and Freddy’s box office mojo. But 1985’s The Island, a Hong Kong production, hearkens back to the ‘70s era of horror family fare…meaning inbred maniacs looking for a new addition to the group photo. Using the films of Tobe Hooper and Wes Craven as a template, director Po-Chih Leong delivers an anything-goes thriller that’s party comedy, part torture-porn and all Hong Kong.

An inexperienced teacher brings his troublesome students along on a two-day excursion where they’re greeted by the island’s only residents: a trio of troubled brothers with designs on the available females. After a matchmaking attempt is rejected, pitchforks, machetes and various pointy objects come into play as the brothers decide to recruit a new bride by any means necessary.

Odd in a way only Hong Kong movies can be, The Island jumps from Last House on the Left-style abuse to goofy Inspector Wears Skirts slapstick. And the film’s unpredictability – along with a gonzo visual style - manages to keep you on edge until the real survival horror kicks in for the final act. It’s a WTF cocktail of absurdity, audacity and unapologetic Western influences that shouldn’t work but somehow does thanks to Leong’s willingness to lean into both extremes. The Island stops well short of Hooper and Craven’s disturbing classics, but the realization that halfway around the world filmmakers were twisting the slasher template into something uniquely their own is worth saving a spot for on the shelf.

Eureka’s 2,000 copy limited-edition, struck from a new 2K restoration, includes two audio commentary tracks, a 30-minute or so breakdown by Tony Ryans and a 2023 festival sit-down with director Po-Chih Leong from 2023.

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