By YASMINA KETITA
THE WIND, directed by Nico Mastorakis, is a film I recently discovered and wish I had seen much earlier. Starring Meg Foster and Wings Hauser, THE WIND is a highly underrated movie with a feminist take on a home invasion story. For a film with such a small cast, THE WIND is darkly atmospheric, with an intensity that grabs your attention – and it deserves some recognition.
From Sarah Conner and Ellen Ripley to Nikita and every lead played by Cynthia Rothrock, there are a lot of powerful women in the ‘80s and ‘90s action genre. While there are strong female protagonists in ‘80s horror franchises, like Alice in A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master, when it comes to the lesser-known B-movies reviewed in The Rewind Zone, many lack self-sufficient women, especially ones that are badass and intelligent like Meg Foster in THE WIND when faced with patriarchal dialogue.
Foster plays mystery novelist Sian Anderson, who leaves her Hollywood Hills home for the small Greek village of Monemvasia, where she rents a home by the coast to focus on writing her next novel. Most residents leave for Switzerland during the off-season, so the area is secluded. Elias Appleby (Robert Morley), who rents Sian the house, claims to be a feminist while he’s showing her around. He defines his feminism by claiming that he believes women should carry their own luggage (I guess he forgot about politeness in his stance) but is too old to carry it anyway as he refers to Sian as “dear girl”. When Elias asks Sian if she minds being called “dear girl,” she responds. surprising him with her unyielding answer, She does, in fact, mind. Her reply is most likely not commonly heard. Still, it is dismissed. Before parting ways, Elias leaves Sian with a warning: “Remember the wind. It can be very dangerous at this time of year, strong enough to kill, so don’t roam around alone at night.”
Sian calls her boyfriend, John (David McCallum), to let him know she arrived safely, but a bad connection caused by the wind cuts the call short. She then hears a knock on the door and finds groceries left for her – but no delivery person. When she brings the groceries in, a man bursts through the door, scaring her. Phil (Wings Hauser) introduces himself as a handyman who lives on the property. The first time Phil speaks to Sian is another misogynist dialogue. When he learns she’s a writer, he immediately assumes she writes romance because she must if she’s a female author in the ‘80s right? Sian quickly corrects him with brashness and states that she’s into murder. Hell yeah, girl!
I really admire that it’s established right away that Sian is a resilient, strong and independent woman. Before she leaves Los Angeles, her boyfriend orders a blimp to fly over the city, flashing a sentimental message, and while her girlfriends covet the kind of man Sian’s with, she’s completely apathetic about the blimp. This comfort in not needing a man is not commonly seen in women in ‘80s films. Let’s be honest. Women mostly play meek victims (with plenty of gratuitous nudity and sex scenes) in ‘80s horror. Not that I don’t also enjoy this when it’s that type of movie. I like boobs, but when a film like THE WIND was made, during a highly misogynistic era of horror, it’s a refreshing change. Sian doesn’t show much fear and keeps a calm and rational demeanour throughout the film.
The attacks begin very quickly. Once Sian finds the remains of a body buried by Phil, she’s trapped like one of the characters in her stories and uses her crime-writing knowledge to stay alive. I really like how Sian rationalizes every situation by talking out loud to herself. I’m not sure if this was intentionally done for the audience to understand her thought process, as she is alone in the house, or to portray her intelligent strategies. She also insults and berates Phil during the movie, which I also appreciate.
Eventually, John gets through to the local police, and Officer Kesner (Steve Railsback) goes to check things out. I noted another independent characteristic in Sian here when the couple strikes a similarity to each other. Early in the film, John displays his longing for Sian and tries to convince her to allow him to accompany her on this trip, which she refuses. Kesner recognizes and accepts that she can take care of herself when he tells her to wait inside while he inspects the exterior of the house, but she convinces him to let her go with him because she doesn’t want to be left alone. We see she’s not impressed by John, who desires to take care of her while seemingly ignoring her need to be alone. Sian appreciates a man like Kesner, who acknowledges her competence and strength but doesn’t have an instinctive inclination to protect her.
I’m a big fan of one of Nico Mastorakis’s other films, Nightmare at Noon, which also stars Wings Hauser (who’s in a plethora of fabulously low-budget horror and action films). I’m also a huge Wings Hauser fan. I highly recommend watching Champagne and Bullets (aka Road To Revenge aka GetEven). THE WIND’s soundtrack by renowned composer Hans Zimmer along with Stanley Myers is awesome. You can watch THE WIND on Tubi, but I recommend picking up the Arrow Video Blu-ray that includes the soundtrack and sweet new art by Graham Humphreys. The only thing I wish this movie had was a more badass ending (executed by Sian, of course) that would’ve even further highlighted the feminist tone of the film. Nevertheless, I’m not complaining about what we got because I absolutely love dummy falls in ‘80s movies. What I feel when I watch THE WIND is romance. That’s nice, but don’t smother us. Women can take care of themselves, but if we need help, we’ll ask. Respect women’s independence when we need to be alone and do not — I repeat – do not call us “dear girl!”
