Shudder: Penny Lane is Dead is a brilliant, brutal Australian throwback horror film
- Carla Davis
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
Shudder is adding Penny Lane is Dead to their schedule as of Friday, August 28, and it is definitely not a film for the faint of heart. Horror fans know all too well how brutal Australian horror movies can be, and Penny Lane is Dead has been marketed as an Ozploitation throw-back – so, yeah, it’s pretty violent and bloody.
In the beginning, it almost feels like it might be a horror/comedy mashup. It's 1986, and we meet our main final girl contestants: pretty, blonde, bubbly Penny Lane (Bailey Spalding), who is about to start college, Amy (Alexandra Jensen), the sweet, insecure girl who keeps an emotional support stuffy, and tough Toni (Tahlee Fereday), who is secretly romantically involved with Penny. The three are besties, and are celebrating Penny’s bright future at her family’s remote cottage. Everything seems fun and light-hearted.
When we first meet bad girl Kat (Sophia Wright-Mendelsohn), she is baking and decorating cupcakes, which are labeled “Kat”, “Slut”, “Fat” and “Dog.” That doesn’t bode well, especially when we see her dumping some pills into one of the cupcakes.
As it turns out, Kat is Penny’s extremely jealous cousin, and she has invited herself to the small party. Needless to say, the other three are not thrilled when she shows up at their front door.
After Penny passes out from her drugged treat, three men show up, and it’s obvious from the start that they are not good guys. Angus (Ben O’Toole) is Kat’s psycho boyfriend, and he is joined by Rodowsky (Fletcher Humphreys) and the much older Merrick (Steve Le Marquand).
It doesn’t take long for things to go downhill, so I recommend buckling up for the events that follow. It gets very brutal, as our three new friends are subjected to being terrorized, physically and sexually assaulted…and yes, there are some brutal deaths on both sides as the ladies fight for their very lives.
Penny Lane is Dead gives us a solid cast
The cast is strong, and makes us care about the well being of the friends, as well as root for the demise of the bad guys. While Angus is definitely a crazed killer, Kat is the truly scary one here, and Wright-Mendelsohn plays her perfectly. One moment she is laughing and making jokes, and the next – well, the next, she is not.
And a special shout-out has to go to writer-director Mia’Kate Russell, whose background in practical special effects served her well here. Practical effects are often seen as a lost art, but Russell and Luke Polti prove they can still pack a grisly, bloody punch.
Penny Lane is Dead begins streaming on Shudder Friday, August 28.
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