Rabbit Hole Featuring Michael Hutchence, Richard Lowenstein, Troy Davies etc.

There was a documentary on Michael Hutchence last night on telly. It led me down this strange rabbit hole of half remembered videos and collaborations. I have a vague memory that perhaps Speed Kills was in conjunction with Cold Chisel's Don Walker for some kind of soundtrack which appears to be the 1982 Australian flick Freedom. What about that fabulous hair?

This video appearance from Hutchence in Eccohomo's Motorcycle Baby was a late night staple of late 80s Aussie music tv. At the time I just assumed it was another Hutchence collaboration with Ollie Olsen. I think I was half right, but it's a Troy Davies project. He's the dude in the beanie and the woman on the back of Michael's motorbike. He was an actor, artist, Sharpie, drag queen, man, woman, some kind of performance artist and much more.

Admittedly I knew fuck all about Troy Davies until tonight but I think he makes an appearance in this film clip as well as being part of the film crew. He was a friend and a colleague of film and video clip director Richard Lowenstein. Talking To A Stranger is a 1982 Aussie post-punk classic from Hunters and Collectors. The Avalanches would remix this as Stalking To A Stranger 30 years later.

This sheds some light on Peter/Vanessa/Troy Davies.

More light shedding. Apparently there's a documentary on Davies, Ecco Homo, directed by Richard Lowenstein and Lynn-Maree Milburn. This was screened at the Melbourne International Film Festival in August 2015. Having moved away from Melbourne in 2013 I totally missed that. So while all this stuff is news to me tonight all you Melbourne hipsters probably know all about it, whatever. More info.

More On Movies

7 MELBOURNE FILMS
Dogs In Space (1986)
I resided in Richmond, where this picture was filmed, for many years. People still make pilgrimages to the Dogs In Space house. I drove past it once...er...it's just a house.

Malcolm (1986)
A whole lotta Melbourne in this one. Collingwood, Flemington, Kew, Thornbury, South Melbourne & The Central Business District. The titular character Malcolm works for Melbourne trams. I first saw this at that cinema in Balwyn when I was a kid visiting Melbourne.

Romper Stomper 1992)
All I can remember is Richmond Train station and scenes in Footscray but there's probably a few other locations.

Death In Brunswick (1991)
The old Bombay Rock Club in Sydney Road and that theatre in Coburg are the two locations I can recall. I lived in East Brunswick for almost a decade in the 90s before it got taken over by hipsters in the new millenium. The Lomond used to have lesbian country bands, The East Brunswick Hotel was v dodgy. There was a good video shop on the cnr. of Albert & Lygon. Maybe Mark Hartley worked there...is that right?

Chopper (2000)
Locations include Pentridge in Coburg which had closed down by then and Bojangles car park in St. Kilda which I'm sure didn't exist by that stage.

Patrick (1978)
Shot in East Melbourne, Brighton, Prahran, South Yarra and probably more. I used to know which number tram was in the film but I've forgotten.

Ghosts Of The Civil Dead (1988)
This was made in Melbourne but it was set in the middle of nowhere, adding to the eerie vibe. It's not for Melbourne-y location trainspotters really.

MOVIES I KNOW I'VE SEEN BUT CAN'T REMEMBER A SINGLE THING ABOUT THEM
Jaws (Well it had a shark)
The Babadook (Dunno what it had. I assume a babadook, whatever that is)
Subway
Friday The 13th
Serial Mom
The Parallax View (Well it had a Warren Beatty)
Shampoo (A Beatty, a Christie and a Hawn)
Donnie Brasco

FILMS I'VE NEVER SEEN
The Titanic (Do I need to see it? I hear it's not bad)
Beverly Hills Cop (As above)

GOOD OR BAD? I DUNNO
Eyes Wide Shut
Moulin Rouge
The King Of Marvin Gardens (Sometimes Jack Nicholson just gets on me tits!)
Death Wish
My Bloody Valentine
Barton Fink
In The Mouth Of Madness
Traffic
Death Bed
Spring Breakers

7 FROM THE 70s FROM ELLIOT GOULD. Surely he's THE ACTOR of the 1970s.
The Silent Partner (Perhaps the most underrated movie of the 70s)
California Split (Obv.)
The Long Goodbye (Obv.)
Little Murders (This has to be the weirdest film Gould ever did)
Busting (Gould stars alongside alleged non murderer Robert Blake)
Getting Straight (Best Gould Performance?)
The Lady Vanishes (Great chemistry between Gould and Cybil Shepherd)

RECENTLY WATCHED 
Night School (1981)
Pretty good. Sort of a Giallo made in America.

Death Wish (1974)
Did I need to be 14 to enjoy this or maybe another human entirely? Worth it for the wtf scene where someone spray paints a bare arse. A historic moment in cinema to be sure.

Popcorn (1991)
Good ideas and production values but not quite executed to its full potential. A definite curio though for people interested in the Slasher continuum.

Get Out (2017)
??? ZZZZZZ

IT (2017)
Pretty good. The kids in the cinema seemed to like it, it's a kids film innit?

Gerald's Game (2017)
Such a naff ending it ruined the rest of the film which was probably only a 5 out of 10 anyway. Don't waste your time on this one.

I THOUGHT THEY WERE DEAD, BUT THEY'RE NOT
Peter Fonda
Tippi Hedren
Gena Rowlands
Kirk Douglas (Surely that is not correct)