Directed by Brian Trenchard-SmithReview by Greg Goodsell
In the far-flung future Australia of 1995, things have taken a turn for the worse. A series of global catastrophes has rendered the world effectively bankrupt, and law and order is strictly on a limited basis. Taking his girlfriend Carmen (Natalie McCurry) to the Star Drive-In for a quick one, unemployed lay-about “Crabs” (Ned Manning) has his lovemaking rudely interrupted when armed policemen steal two wheels from his ’56 Chevy. The next morning, the true purpose of the Star Drive-In is revealed to him; it is a concentration camp for undesirables, chiefly the young and jobless. In exchange, the inmates are allowed all the junk food they can eat and a steady stream of no-budget action pictures screened nightly. Making friends with their fellow inmates, Crabs and his girlfriend discover that everyone there has more or less accepted their fate. Things get sketchier still when the drive-in is given a sudden influx of Asian inmates. In response, the white Australians band together -- NOT to confront their captors, but to discriminate and harass the minorities. Confronting the kindly, if insidious drive-in manager (Peter Whitford), Crabs vows to escape from the dismal drive-in – or die trying.
Director Brian
Trenchard-Smith one-upped the likes of Quentin Tarrantino with this ironic, self-reflexive
film, which has yet to be equaled – low-budget action car crash movies are part
of a greater social malaise, this message being tucked neatly into a low-budget
action car crash movie! Dead End Drive-In looks great, with artfully composed
shots of a dirty, dystopian backdrop comprised of spray-painted junked cars and
wild colored lighting. The drive-in’s denizens are a smash-up of the then current
punk rock hairstyles and fashions, coupled with Mad Max-inspired remnant
attire.