Survival of the Fittest.
tvtv3 | Sorento, IL United States | 03/16/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Like many people who have seen this film, I saw it when I was a kid in the early 1980s on HBO. The plot revolves around a young school teacher and the children of various ages that she teaches in a schoolhouse in Australia. The teacher and the children are kidnapped by men wearing masks who are planning on holding their victims for a hefty ransom and perhaps a little "fun" with the teacher and the eldest girl. The movie is suspenseful and full of action as the victims escape from one holding area to another until the end when they take a stand, make a fortress, and take things into their own hands.Scenes from this movie have stuck with me my whole life. I had nightmares for weeks about the masked bandits coming after me and for awhile I could never look at a Daffy Duck mask the same again. I also vividly remember the students and teacher making a last stand at the old cave where they made their fortress. I was always impressed by how crafty those group of kids were and always hoped I could be as cunning in a similar situation.This is a great movie. Unfortunately, it's very difficult to find. It's rather rare on video, video stores just don't carry it (I've looked in over 20 different ones and not one carries it), and I search the cable guides weekly but haven't seen it listed since around 1990. Hopefully, the fine folks at HBO will wise up and re-release this film on VHS and DVD soon."
Ask that Fortress be Re-Released!
FreddyC | 11/23/1999
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Fortress, starring Rachel Ward - Australian siren of 80's movies, gives one of her best performances in this action/suspense thriller. The story takes place in a tiny town in the outback of Australia. Ward plays Sally Jones, a teacher who, along with her class, is kidnapped by a group of masked men who hope for a large ransom, in exchange for the group. The only hope for Sally and her class is escape into the wilds of the outback. The school children and their teacher push the narrative forward with heart-stopping action and relentless suspense which ends with a spine-tingling conclusion. If this movie sounds interesting, write to amazon.com and asked that it be re-released. It's currently unavailable."
Suspenseful Thriller
Amy Lynn | Pennsylvania United States | 04/29/2007
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Setting: Australian wilderness- desolate and isolated. An Australian teacher and her students. A schoolhouse in the middle of nowhere. They start the day off like normal and are in the middle of a lesson when a group of whackos in crazy masks show up with guns at the window. Some of the masks they use are Santa Claus, A mouse, a duck, etc. The teachers and students are then forced into a van and driven off into the even more remote wilderness area where they are trapped in a cave... Now they have to devise a plan and fight for their own survival and try to get away from these kidnappers before its too late. They have to use their brains to get out of this situation. It reminded me of a Lord of the flies type of deal. The ending was a little disturbing to me. They're in a cave and the last kidnapper comes in and it involves spears, wont give it away here but this was scary and quite plausible situation. Recommended."