This Aussie flick from the early 80s never found the audience it deserved. Marketed in the US to coat-tail on the success of the then-popular HALLOWEEN and other slasher flicks, SNAPSHOT(or THE NIGHT AFTER HALLOWEEN)is hardly in the same league. In fact, SNAPSHOT bears more of a resemblance to the sleazy, psycho-sexual exploitation flicks of guys like Harry Novak and Barry Mahon than John Carpenter and Wes Craven. The story, about a Melborne hairdresser who falls into the world of modeling with unexpected consequences, seems to parallel the set-up of many a grind house flick. Take a fresh young thing, put her in the unfamiliar environs of the big city, and watch while an assortment of predators, pimps, pervs, and pornographers have their way with her. What is almost never in question in those flicks is the innocence of the fresh young thing, or the corruption of those using her. SNAPSHOT takes that convention and twists it with no small amount of sadistic glee. The movie is rather slow-moving by today's standards, being essentially a grimy character study, but it leaves many tantalizing possibilities for the intelligent viewer. Nobody is what they seem, from the seemingly innocent Angela, to her weepy boyfriend Daryl, to Angela's too-cool-for-everything friend Madeline. Virtually everyone Angela encounters wants a piece of her sexually, commercially, psychologically. In fact, the only seemingly benign character she encounters, the kooky photographer Linsey, makes no demands on her whatsoever. He simply smooths out the sheets on a bed previously occupied by some transient acquaintance's and invites Angela to stay in his communal studio/crash pad, a domicile occupied by various helpers, hangers-on, and sex partners (it's interesting to note the mural on the brick facade prominently displays the title, "Paradise") The movie's packed to the gills with great characters, from the eccentric Linsey (who shoots dead animals in his spare time), to Madeline's pervy, film producer husband, to a bizarre nightclub performer who looks like a refugee from a community theater production of CABARET. The final scene has Angela acting on her initial wish to depart the country and start over, although one may feel that, given what has just happened prior, her reaction indicates a serious emotional disconnect. And given who is helping her, the outcome may be nothing like Angela anticipated.
Review of The Day After Halloween
