Patrick (1978) and Snapshot (1979) | Two Ozploitation suspense thrillers get a 4K restoration release

Two of my favourite Ozploitation films, Patrick (1978) and Snapshot (1979), have been given a glorious 4K restoration, and Powerhouse Films have gone to town with their Indicator boxset releases, which include some marvellous bonus material alongside the UHD and Blu-ray editions. Available now.

First up is Patrick, from director Richard Franklin, starring Susan Penhaligon, Sir Robert Helpmann, Rod Mullinar, Bruce Barry, and Julia Blake and introducing Robert Thompson as the film’s titular protagonist.

Penhaligon plays British nurse, Kathy Jacquard, who takes up a nursing position at a private clinic in Melbourne after leaving her Australian husband, Ed (Mullinar). There, she is charged with looking after Patrick (Thompson), who has been in a comatose state after murdering his parents three years previously. The hospital’s owner, Dr Roget (Helpmann), is keeping Patrick alive as part of an experiment to explore the nature of life and death. But unbeknownst to them all, Patrick has psychokinetic powers and, falling for Kathy, begins a murderous campaign against anyone who comes between them…

Produced by Antony I. Ginnane and written by Everett De Roche (whose first feature screenplay was Long Weekend), Patrick was shot over seven weeks in Sydney and edited over three months before its Australian release in October 1978 (the same time as Long Weekend). While it performed poorly there, Patrick‘s subsequent international release was a huge success. It paved the way for a slew of Ginnane-produced thrillers – including Snapshot (1979) and Harlequin (1980), both directed by Simon Wincer, Thirst (1979) with Rod Hardy at the helm, and Survivor (1981), directed by David Hemmings. It also marked Franklin’s ascent as a director and producer, with Roadgames (1981) and Psycho II (1983) following in Patrick‘s wake.

For me, Patrick reigns supreme within the Ozploitation genre. Franklin crafts his Hitchcockian thriller with meticulous detail, an eye for suspense, and just the right amount of shocks and scares; Brian May’s Bernard Herrmann-esque score is suitably atmospheric, as is Donald McAlpine’s lighting and cinematography, and the special effects are bang on. De Roche also gives us a collection of believable characters, all with their quirks, especially Julia Blake’s hard-as-nails matron, who is frightened of Patrick and Helpman’s ‘mad as a box of frogs’ shrink. Franklin also makes excellent use of the filming location, the 1885 Simmonds Hall mansion in South Yarra, which doubles as the Roget Clinic.

Completists will love the Powerhouse release as it features three versions: the Australian theatrical release (the go-to one for me), the Italian-language version which opts for a score by Dario Argento’s favourite prog-rockers Goblin (the one I’ve longed to see and hear – especially now that English subtitles have been included for the first time – and I’ll be watching this repeatedly now), and the heavily-shortened re-dubbed American cut (I’ll be giving that one a miss thank you!).

The new 4K restoration from the original negative is available both as a Limited Edition 4K UHD with Dolby Vision HDR and as a separate Limited Edition Blu-ray, and the bonus extras (see the full list below) are most welcomed for this huge fan of the film.
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Hot on the heels of Patrick‘s success at Cannes, Tony Ginnane put together his thriller follow-up, 1978’s Snapshot. Everett De Roche wrote the script in a month, and the 21-day shot again took place on location in Melbourne, while directing duties fell to Simon Wincer, who had cut his teeth on the popular Crawford TV cop shows Matlock Police, Division 4 and Homicide.

Once again, Ginnane was able to score success overseas, especially in Norway and in the US, where indie producer Brandon Chase (of Alligator fame) had the foresight to capitalise on the success of John Carpenter’s Halloween, by releasing the film under the title, The Day After Halloween.

Making her first lead in a feature, Australian TV actor Sigrid Thornton (who was known for The Sullivans and Father, Dear Father in Australia in 1978), plays naïve hairdresser Angela, living under the thumb of her domineering mother, who is persuaded by her model friend Madeline (Chantel Contouri) to try glamour modelling.

After posing topless on a beach for a fashion photographer (Hugh Keays-Byrne, AKA Mad Max‘s Toecutter), she is soon on the road to stardom – but not without a cost. Her ex-boyfriend Daryl (Vince Gill, AKA Mad Max‘s Nightrider) keeps following her about in his Mr Whippy ice cream van, and wealthy modelling agency owner Daryl (Robert Bruning) has his eye on seducing her. But who is the real threat to her life?

I have a soft spot for Snapshot, mainly for the fact I’m a big fan of both Sigrid Thornton and Chantel Contori. At the time of the film’s release in Australia (in April 1979), the two actors were well-known to us Aussies for appearing in the period soap The Sullivans – probably the most watched show on telly at the time, and Thornton also had a stint in my favourite sitcom, Father, Dear Father In Australia. Being only 15 in 1979, I remember it was rather risqué to see her naked picture on posters for the film at the time – but it only made me want to see the film (which I did at the drive-ins) even more.

Now, while it doesn’t have Patrick‘s Hitchcockian vibe, Snapshot is a tautly directed thriller – with subtle hints of grimy exploitation. Thornton totally carries the picture, as does Brian May’s lush piano-heavy score and the scope cinematography (by Vincent Monton, who had previously lensed Long Weekend and Newsfront). Revisiting the film again via this new restoration release, I think it still holds up well, and I thoroughly enjoyed all the bonus extras included here – especially Grant Page’s commentary, which is especially poignant as the legendary stuntman died, aged 85, on 14 March, just 11 days before this Powerhouse Films/Indicator release.

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PATRICK LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES
• New 4K restoration from the original negative by Powerhouse Films
• Three presentations of the film: the Australian theatrical version (113 mins), the US theatrical cut (97 mins), and the Italian-language version (102 mins)
• Original mono audio
• Audio commentary with director Richard Franklin and screenwriter Everett De Roche (2002)
• On-set Interview with Richard Franklin (1978, 10 mins) conducted by film critic Ivan Hutchinson
• On-stage Interview with Richard Franklin (2001, 9 mins): previously unseen interview in which the director discusses Patrick and its unofficial Italian sequel, 1980’s Patrick Still Lives
• A Coffee Break with Antony I. Ginnane (2009, 18 mins): the film producer revisits Patrick
• ‘Not Quite Hollywood’ Interviews (2008, 62 mins): extensive outtakes from Mark Hartley’s documentary featuring Franklin, Ginnane, De Roche, and actors Susan Penhaligon and Rod Mullinar
• Shock Tactics (2024, 27 mins): an in-depth appreciation by Australian cinema specialist Stephen Morgan
• Original theatrical trailers and TV spots
• French title sequence comparison
• Image galleries: promotional and publicity material and behind-the-scenes
• New and improved English subtitles and newly translated English subtitles
• 80-page book with a new essay by Alan Miller, exclusive extracts from Richard Franklin and Antony I Ginnane’s unpublished memoirs, archival interviews with Everett De Roche and special-effects supervisor Conrad Rothmann, and full film credits

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SNAPSHOT LIMITED EDITION 4K UHD SPECIAL FEATURES
• New 4K HDR restoration from the original negative by Powerhouse Films of the theatrical cut (93 mins)
• World Premiere 4K (2160p) UHD presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
• Extended director’s cut, incorporating the best-surviving standard-definition materials (105 mins) ED NOTE: The ratio is different here and takes a while to get used to – but it is interesting to see what was originally trimmed out.
• Original mono audio
• Audio commentary on the theatrical cut with director Simon Wincer, producer Antony I Ginnane, actor Sigrid Thornton, and cinematographer Vincent Monton, moderated by Mark Hartley (2017)
• Audio commentary on the director’s cut with Ginnane and film critic/archivist Jaimie Leonarder (2018)
• Audio commentary on the director’s cut with Ginnane and horror hostess Katarina Leigh Waters (2012)
• Producing ‘Snapshot’ (2017, 28 mins): Ginnane traces the film’s journey from page to screen
• ‘Not Quite Hollywood’ Interviews (2008, 40 mins): Outtakes from Mark Hartley’s documentary, featuring Thornton, Wincer, Ginnane, Monton, writer Everett De Roche, assistant director Tom Burstall, and actor Lynda Stoner
• Archival audio interview with Simon Wincer (1979, 17 mins)
• Special effects sequence audio commentary with stuntman Grant Page (2008, 2 mins)
• The Trans-Pacific Mode (2024, 10 mins): appreciation by Stephen Morgan
• The Day After Halloween: alternative opening title sequence
• Original theatrical trailers
• TV spots
• Image galleries
• New and improved English subtitles
• 80-page book with a new essay by Ian Barr, extract from producer Antony I Ginnane’s unpublished memoirs, archival interviews with Wincer, De Roche, and composer Brian May, and film credits