Details: Written by: Sharon Davies; Published: 22 July 2012

RETURN TO WOLF CREEK App Review

Written by Sharon Davies

Released on iTunes

Release Date 14th June 2012
Price £5.49
Requirements: Compatible with ipad only. Requires iOS 4.3 or later.
Developer: Ping! Enterprises Pty Ltd. SharpAgency.

Review:

Australia has hit the horror genre with some truly brilliant films, but one of my top 5 is 2005’s Wolf Creek. It’s always a good recommendation to various shades of movie fans and Aussie bad guy Mick Taylor truly slashes his way into the big league. So upon finding out that 7 years after its release the cult following had driven an app I excitedly looked forward to its content.

Click images to enlarge.

Loading the introduction, you’re served with some clips of the film, including the infamous hanging body shot, followed by being lead to Mick’s tool shed. You then have to use your flashlight to choose from the following options:

A review – Does what it says on the tin, presents a review published on trulydisturbing.com, which also explains what makes the film resonate with so many horror fans especially in Australia, plus there are some great insights into the “true events” side of the story.
Video – This includes the original 2005 trailer, a 45 minute documentary The Making of Wolf Creek (2006), an interview with John Jarrett and 3 deleted scenes.
Trivia – Includes some maps and little known facts about the film plus a scrapbook of pictures showing the set, cast and crew and some little anecdotes of the whole production.
Storyboards – The Original Storyboards from Greg Mclean, which give a perspective on camera shots and story.
Wallpapers – Over 65 HD ipad wallpapers.
Mick’s Draw [sic] of Screams – record your own scream on Mick's tape recorder which will then be uploaded to the Return to Wolf Creek website and used as a catalogue of screams for commercial use. Fancy having your name on the credits of a production? Then scream good dagnammit!
Bios – Brief blurbs on all main cast and director.
Credits – A list of the main developers and crew plus special thanks and social media links.

Click images to enlarge.

Now, there will be two perspectives on this app.
1: people who have only seen the film and love it.
2: people who have seen the 2 disc DVD edition of Wolf Creek.

For that first group, I would highly recommend many elements of the app and the video section is superb, including the 45 min documentary. However, for those of you have seen the special features on the 2 disc edition there isn’t much new here, which is a real shame. Even if there had been a cast / director look back on the cult following, or new interviews etc. it might have added some obvious need for its re-release. Also for the £5.49 ($8.49) price tag it doesn’t really stretch further than what you can watch / see initially. Perhaps it would have been better to add a game into the mix which would allow some longevity to it all.

Click images to enlarge.

In summary, if you like the film and are remotely interested in how it was made or have a desperate need for over 65 wallpapers to adorn your iPad then this is gem and you wont be disappointed. However for those of you who have already seen the original special features then you may feel it limited and the price tag rather steep… in fact more than steep. Somewhat vertical.