StunnaKrypto Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

Roy Hart If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

Kimball Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Darin One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

Coventry This was the first Australian haunted house thriller I ever watched (at least I think it was, unless overlooking another one), but unfortunately I can't claim it was a very good or even remotely memorable experience. "Next of Kin" is a slower than slow developing thriller with only a few worthwhile moments but sadly a whole lot of pointless filling & meaningless mystery building. The film benefices slightly from its naturally eerie setting – namely an elderly folks home – and the always secluded Australian outback locations, but the actual storyline is thin and derivative, the lead characters are unsympathetic and – last but not least – the amount of thrills and shocks is unforgivably low. Linda, a young and not-so-attractive woman returns to her hometown as she inherited her recently deceased mother's resting home. She's not very motivated to continue running the place and her reluctance even increases when strange occurrences take place on the estate. The discovery of her mother's diary sheds some light on the uncanny situation within the walls of the resting home, but the sinister events carry on. The attentive and perhaps more experienced horror viewer will notice a detail quite early in the film which will already reveal an important part of the final denouement. The sight of old, wrinkly people stepping in and out of bathtubs does make me shiver, but it's still not the type of horror I anticipate to see on film. The last ten minutes of "Next of Kin" suddenly become extremely virulent and outrageous, with a stabbing through the eye and even a genuine head-explosion, but it's too late to save the film as a whole unfortunately. I agree haunted house movies generally need to rely on atmosphere and suspense instead of graphic gore, but "Next of Kin" has literally nothing.

criticman2000 The one problem this film has is contrivance. I mention this in advance, because you have to turn your reality switch off and forget about that. The reasons you would do so, are because this was made on a minuscule budget, with very limited promotion and is highly ambitious for what it tries to accomplish. It's also very sincere. It's not schlock. The filmmakers gave this effort their all. So, YEAH, forget the holes in logic (some) and concentrate on the good acting, beautiful framing of scenes, above-average cinematography, lurid jolts and that slam-BANG ending. This one's a treat from beginning to end, for anybody who treasures superbly done horror (and let's face it, people, how many undiscovered gems like this remain out there?). It suffered from being released in the USA by a tiny video distributor (VCD) who was just about in bankruptcy when it came out. It had NO theater exhibition outside its native Australia and got confused with a Patrick Swayze pot boiler of the same name, which surfaced around the same time. I like this film SO MUCH, that I will not divulge details of the plot to you in any manner, whatsoever. Seriously, hunt around in the bins at your local video store and keep your fingers crossed, because you'll dig this one. Flaws? I took a point off for them, so you're good to go get this sweet Australian sleeper.

udar55 Not to be confused with the Patrick Swayze vehicle or Atom Egoyan film with the same title, this Australian production from 1982 is a superb horror film. Featuring fantastic cinematography and good performances, NEXT OF KIN is one of those great $3 finds (on the US Virgin Vision label) and definitely deserves more attention.The film's biggest asset is the direction by Tony Williams. Despite Virgin's blood drenched cover, NEXT OF KIN isn't really a slasher film. The first 2/3 of the film unfolds in a very slow and deliberate manner that allows the audience to experience the unfolding mystery as Linda (Jacki Kerin) begins to do so on her own. Williams builds the atmosphere effectively over this time. There are several chilling moments involving long crawls down hallways and thoughts of being watched. The last 1/3 is a straight up horror/action finale that, with the mystery revealed, places the heroine in an adrenaline-pumping chase. The tagline on one box for this reads, "Some films take their audience to the brink of terror…this one crosses the border!" I couldn't agree more.Another key to the film's success is the mystery itself. It is one of those films where you have to watch every little detail. The writers (director Williams and Michael Heath) deliberately lead the audience down the wrong path so that, like Linda, we think we know it all but are completely in the dark. The final revelation is quite surprising and makes complete sense given everything seen previous in the film. Of course the stellar cast helps greatly in pulling this off. Kerin is very good as the investigative Linda. Alex Scott, who also appeared in ROMPER STOMPER, is particularly good as the Dr. Barton.

Muffy-5 This film continues to scare the hell out of me.It has been dismissed by some as a routine slasher film, but I whole-heartedly disagree, for a few reasons:SUSPENSE: Much of the movie IS suspense...slow walks down hallways, heads looking around corners, far-off shots of indistinct figures. This really must be what it's like to go crazy, as Linda fears she is. Importantly, the suspenseful moments never cop-out, they do usually end in a satisfying chill...but the climax is wonderfully held off for the end.MUSIC: The music is absolutely incredible in that early-80's, Tangerine Dream meets John Carpenter sort of way. It's perfect. Sometimes, it even transcends.ACTING: The acting is pretty low-key, allowing us time to get interested in the characters, their quirks, their hang-ups. But when it comes time for the climax, the lead actress really lets loose, and it is most disturbing to be witness to such a total frenzy.STYLISH CINEMATOGRAPHY: Moody hallways, strange camera angles & movements (particularly the long wall-hugging draw away from Linda's nervous eyes as she peers into the hallway, and the cameraman following the nonchalant cat down the hall), creepy focus changes and slow-motion moments.SURPRISES: The ending will blow your head off. It's nice to see a heroine being sensible, capable, and strong (especially in 1982!!!)For sure, it's not all good. Particularly weak is the link between the suspenseful bulk of the movie and the frantic climax...the storyline falls completely apart when it comes time to explain why everything has happened. Fortunately, we don't really care at that point, because it's all too freaking scary. If you can find it, SEE IT. Especially if you like horror films populated by realistic human beings (the old man Lance, telling endlessly dull stories about the war...Linda's fork tricks and sugar-cube pyramid...the father in the restaurant threatening to smack his son into the middle of next week). Few films have upset me as much as this one, and hopefully it will do that for you as well.