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Rollercoaster Ride
First time filmmaker writes and stars in a ruthless psychological thriller
Swedish-born Johan Earl (pictured) is a man of many talents. Based in Australia, Earl owns and runs his own production company Partisan Pictures, as well as a special effects company ARMZFX, responsible for effects featured on Twilight and Gangs of Oz.
Earl is also the producer, writer and male lead of a menacing new psychological thriller, A Perfect Life. Directed by British filmmaker Jith Sen, the film positions itself somewhere between James Wan's Saw and Rob Reiner's Misery.
Taking place in an unknown American town, Earl (who also starred in the Australian film Gabriel) plays Andrew Walters, a young go-getter in the prime of his life. Despite having a promising career and a beautiful wife (Heidi Houghting), Andrew still isn't satisfied and begins an affair with Rachael (Amelia Beau Kaldor), a saucy brunette from his office.
After a while his mistress tires of Andrew's empty promises; revealing her twisted and tortured psyche when she holds Andrew and his wife hostage at her foreboding art studio. She chains Andrew to a looming grid of steel spikes and attaches an old lie detector. Meanwhile, his wife is chained up inside the studio's furnace, where the two can see each other on monitors. Both women fire a barrage of incriminating questions at Andrew, commencing a sadistic game of impossible choices.
If one thinks the film sounds intense, Earl agrees. "The best way to describe it is by saying it's an exhausting emotional rollercoaster ride. It's a little deeper than just revenge on a cheating lover. It's about the consequences of toying with people's emotions, and how people react to protect themselves when they feel they're going to get hurt."
A Perfect Life was shot in Australia during winter in an old factory which was converted into a sound stage. All the sets for the film were made there. Shooting during the nights in the middle of winter was a physical challenge for Earl, but he maintains it was worth it to set the film apart from others of its genre.
Earl explains, "The film was an experiment in achieving a certain look. It certainly isn't easy to watch. For the most part it's grainy, dark and very uncomfortable. We experimented with a few looks and processes but we didn't want a glossy pretty picture that was easy to watch, in a way we want the audience to be in as much pain as our main characters."
A Perfect Life is set to screen in Sydney on March 15 at Hoyts Cinemas, Entertainment Quarter (formerly Fox Studios). You can watch the film's trailer here.