Black Sheep
Director: Jonathan King. Screenplay: Jonathan King. Cinematography: Richard Bluck. Film editing: Chris Plummer. Production design: Kim Sinclair. Music: Victoria Kelly. Producer: Philippa Campbell. With: Nathan Meister, Peter Feeney, Matthew Chamblerlain, Tammy Davis, Glenis Levestam, Danielle Mason, Tandi Wright, Oliver Driver, Nick Fenton, Eli Kent, Sam Clarke, Richard Chapman, Louis Sutherland, Ian Harcourt, Nick Blake. New Zealand. 87 min. 2006.
You 'eard right, matey, them’s genetically mucked-up sheep wif a taste for 'uman flesh, of which there’s plenty on the New Zealand farm that spawned 'em. This exercise in hyperactive hysteria has strong supporters, but their enthusiasm seems misplaced. Horror comedy is a tough subgenre to pull off, as Peter Jackson and John Landis learned (or should have) in their early careers; skip this specimen and check out the classics by the ingenious James Whale, the inimitable Roger Corman, the largely forgotten Robert Fuest, and the handful of others who’ve figured out how to blend humor, irony, and terror in just the right proportions. This picture isn’t in their illustrious league.
– David Sterritt
