OUTPOST 11 (2012)

Outpost 11 (2012)
Directed by: Anthony Woodley
Written by: Anthony Woodley
Starring: Bernard Hill, Billy Clarke, Graham Till, Joshua Mayes-Cooper, Luke Healy

OUTPOST 11 (2012)
Written and directed by Anthony Woodley

Set in an alternate past during the 50’s, three British soldiers are stationed at a remote outpost in the Artic Circle during the Second 100 Year War against the Prussians, listening for enemy transmissions and serving God, King and country. Whilst carrying out their uneventful day-to-day roles, an enemy warning light begins to flash without an alarm. Confusion heightens when the trio receive a message from HQ that decodes as “God has forsaken us. Abandon all hope.” With the isolation and threat of an enemy attack, not to mention the sudden abandonment by their government, the three soldiers must fight to survive the unseen menace… and each other.

Outpost 11 is quite an atmospheric film, with locations limited to a handful of rooms and blizzard-hit outdoors covered with crisp white snow. The element of cabin fever is quite apparent and the feeling of isolation in a harsh environment, as similarly depicted in Carpenter’s The Thing, is stark.

The main focus of the movie is on the three actors, who all excel in their roles as the three very different soldiers. Mason (Luke Healy), the soldier in charge, is a kind hearted soul, who spends most of his time out in the white hunting for wildlife for supper and keeping a watchful eye on young recruit Albert, in a sort of fatherly role that sometimes blurs into the sexual. Disgruntled veteran Graham (Billy Clarke) is second in command and has a bee in his bonnet with Albert, constantly finding fault in anything the boy does. Graham’s venom seems to be fuelled by his own self-loathing and inadequacy as he secretly snorts the contents of a mystery vial and regularly masturbates at any given opportunity. The most likable of the three is young soldier Albert (Joshua Mayes-Cooper), who’s spent two years at outpost 11 and is terrified by a giant copper generator-cum-boiler called the Omega machine, which powers the station and seems to have a life of its own, possibly hiding a conscious being within. Graham has his fun with Albert by ordering him to attend to the Omega machine, sending the poor soldier into a panic. Graham’s wicked ways, both with Albert and his little man downstairs, get the better of him as he develops an ugly looking wart-like sore on his hand that appears to grow larger each day, before he decides to take a knife to it and see what’s lurking beneath. For Graham, this is just the beginning.

The film starts off very strong, with plenty on offer for steampunk fans to enjoy. As the story progresses, a few varying ideas are thrown into the mix and together they are lost. At first the film appears to be taking a sci-fi direction, but then it turns into a psychological thriller. By the end of it, I wasn’t really sure what was going on and disappointingly, I’d stopped caring, which is a shame as the cinematography, score and set design in the film is top notch.

Outpost 11 is a commendable effort, visually strong with plenty of ideas, but just misses at the final hurdle.

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