Dying Breed (2008)

“Dying Breed” blends two real life events into one storyline that is both entertaining and gruesome. The main source of inspiration comes from Alexander Pierce, a convict that escaped multiple times from Tasmanian penal camps and hid out in the bush. While on the run, he and his fellow escapees turned to cannibalism to survive before they were finally caught and hung. The movie claims that he started the small township named “Sarah” and that his decedents live there and also practice the tradition of cannibalism. The second event that the film focuses on is the extinction of the Tasmanian Tiger and the various claims people make at seeing one alive. This is what brings the unfortunate zoologist and her friends to “Sarah” and the surrounding wilderness. “Dying Breed” is part of the After Dark Horrorfest Season 3 and features Leigh Whannell (writer of “Saw”) and Nathan Phillips (“Wolf Creek”).

Nina’s older sister went to Tasmania to study and to find a living Tasmanian Tiger but eventually ends up drowning. Eight years later Nina follows in her sister’s footsteps to complete her work. With the help of her friend Matt, the trip into the wilderness is made possible by Jack and his girlfriend Rebecca. They make their way to the isolated town called “Sarah” where they find the locals odd and different. One even points out a pair of shackles and says that those belonged to his great grandfather who founded the town. The four leave early the next morning and travel down the river by boat before landing and hiking for several miles. They find a small cave and camp inside, waking up in the middle of the night and believing that they see a Tasmanian Tiger in the distance. As they grab their cameras, and Jack grabs his crossbow, they make the fatal horror movie flaw of splitting up and that’s when the action really begins.

Favorite moment – The scene where Matt and Jack find Rebecca’s body and how, in his traumatic pacing, Jack falls onto two large man-traps, once snapping onto his legs and the other onto his head. The pacing and visuals are perfect for this intense moment and is acted out extremely well.