Jindabyne (2006)
Moderate course language, Moderate violence
| Director: | Ray Lawrence |
| Actors: | Laura Linney, Gabriel Byrne, Deborra-Lee Furness |
Stewart Kane, an Irishman living in the Australian town of Jindabyne, is on a fishing trip in isolated hill country with three other men when they discover the body of a murdered girl in the river. Rather than return to the town immediately, they continue fishing and report their gruesome find days later. Stewart's wife Claire is the last to find out. Deeply disturbed by her husband's action, her faith in her relationship with Stewart is shaken to the core. She wants to understand and tries to make things right. In her determination to help the victim's family Claire sets herself not only against her own family and friends but also those of the dead girl. Her marriage is taken to the brink and her peaceful life with Stewart and their young son hangs in the balance. The story of a murder and a marriage. A powerful and original film about the things that haunt us.
| Status: | QuickPick |
|---|---|
| Run time: | 120mins |
| Origin: | |
| Aspect Ratio: | 16:9 Enhanced |
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Member Reviews (177)
177 Member
Reviews
says
Slow and unfulfilling.
After discovering the body of the murdered young lady the fellows proceed to have a great weekend fishing. The crux of the movie seems to be centred around how these white fellows were disrespectful to the spirit of the deceased aboriginal girl. Perhaps I've been inundated with crime shows on television but I was flabbergasted at the lack of investigation over what seemed to be the far more interesting story.
No lets ignore the interesting story and lets follow the exploits of Stewart's neurotic American wife who runs around town getting money for the dead girl's funeral and harasses the poor bereaved family before gatecrashing the funeral.
The acting was ok though I really couldn't stand Gabriel Byrne's attempted Irish accent.
Overall not really a fan of this one.
sus
says
This was one of the slowest movies I have ever watched, scenery may have been nice but too slow
rosieandian@bigpond.com
says
very ordinary, thankyou
Leonie Edwards
says
Jindabyne is not so much a story of murder as it is the revelation of the characters living in an isolated town ,could be any isolated town,but this one is called Jindabyne.I found the story somehow weaved together the individual characters and peeled the layers off one by one to reveal the hidden truth in each ones heart. An eery reality pervades from beginning to end and holds you suspended feeling something else sinister is about to happen.
Ian
says
Acting was good.
Hayls
says
Quite possibly the worst movie I have ever watched. It was slow and the story line was very disjointed. Forced myself to watch to the end....by fast forwarding most of it. Definitely would not recommend, unless you have 2 hours you want to waste.
Leah
says
An average movie, I had expected more. Beautiful scenery, but the storyline could have been much better. Very slow to develop, and difficult to remain interested.
Ady
says
It was ok, a little strange and a little slow.
Jill
says
I enjoyed what I saw of this movie. It was good to see the beautiful scenery from that area. Unfortunately the dvd played up 3 times and, even after cleaning it 3 times, I was still unable to finish the movie. I missed the last 20 minutes of A 2 hour film.
Janie K
says
I had some preconceived ideas about this film based on the Paul Kelly song 'So much water', so I found it difficult to reconcile all the various other storylines that were going on. No, I didn't enjoy it at all, very slow, unsatisfactory ending. It was almost as though they had picked the actors and then wrote parts for them. Wouldn't recommend.
Andrew
says
Previously reviewed.
Antony D.
says
I saw only partof the movie because it kept on freezing, and after 3 returns I gave up...
WHAT I saw however, was a very good movie, that made people think. What would you have done?
You save up a whole year to go fishing, you drive and walk for a whole day to get there, then a dead woman/girl (an aboriginal aswell) would spoil your holiday???
would you pack up , walk all the way back, contact the police and rescind your holiday? She is dead and nothing can be done about that.....
They made their choice and the movie follow the consequences of this choice... It was clear that each and every one was affected by the death for this girl - in different ways.
It was definitly a good movie that made you think, but the pace was to slow, so a bit hard to watch....
I dont know the end of the movie, so I cant give an allround review, but what i saw was good enough to ask 3 times for another disk
2 stars means worth watching but not a great movie...
Jill R.
says
A typical Australian movie, there is a uniqueness about Australian movies that I hope we continue to make.
very enjoyable and would highly recommend.
Scott P.
says
Good movie, but not as good as I thought it would be. The story seemed to stagnate in parts, which made it hard to watch, but still a decent Australian movie.
Jean
says
A really good Aussie movie, many human layers, well cast and well acted.
Heidi
says
i was so disappointed, i didn't even wait for the end before turning it off.
Kathryn Y.
says
This movie was so interesting..like nothing I have seen before. It really makes you think about morals and what you would do in this situation.
Clive
says
This film gets the award for the most misleading trailer ever. The trailer gives the impression that it's a thriller, but by an hour in, two things of significance have happened. The big story lurks in the background unexplored, and a rather mundane family melodrama is brought to the fore.
There's a great artform which succeeds in playing small stories against the background of a huge story. It's called theatre. I know this won lots of Aussie film awards, but I guess that goes to show that you don't have to do much to win these things
Kylie
says
Had to force myself to finish this one.
Shane M.
says
Interesting..
Noel S.
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Jennie F.
says
a bit disappointing,disjointed & hard to follow
Jennie F.
says
a bit disappointing,disjointed & hard to follow
Sandy H.
says
All and all, I like it the movie and it surprised in me places that were unexpected - but, did not knock me off my feet. Ummm...it's OK.
Judith B.
says
A bit slow but worth the watch
Darren R.
says
Absolute crap. Lasted 20 minutes and nothing like it was described. Good luck.
Kylie W.
says
wasn't a bad movie just a tad slow at times
Julie-Ann F.
says
Not as good as I thought it would be considering the acting talent.
Peter F.
says
Wonderful Aussie movie..watch it as soon asu can..10/10 my wife gave it an 11/10!!
Jennifer N.
says
No - did not like - waste of time.
Suzy B.
says
I had heard this was a good movie but we found it SLOWER than a wet week.
William K.
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Michael B.
says
Very peculiar movie. I watched the movie because I had heard good reviews but I found that because the characters were so dysfunctional the movie didn't flow easily and was not easy watching.
Courtney H.
says
an intriguing australian film. possibly a little too long, though certainly worth the watch.
Constanza H.
says
A disturbing, eerie, creepy movie about reconciliation. I felt compelled to keep watching, but I can't say I enjoyed it all that much.
Christine C.
says
Phillip S.
says
A thought provoking film and one that australians should watch and take notice of. The acting in this film is natural and very real. Thae story is well told and extremely well handeled by the director and actors alike. A mystery and a family drama mixed with racial tension ...what more can you ask of a movie experience. If you liked lantana this is for you.
Leslie C.
says
Terrific acting, gtrat script and plot line. The ending was disappointing.
Jodie H.
says
not good at all. the movie jumped and skipped all over the place
Kim Y.
says
very slow and boring. a big disapointment
Stewart J.
says
Thoughtful and interesting, though a little hard to follow at times.
William D.
says
Great Australian Drama
Michael W.
says
A great and throught provoking Aussie movie. Strongly recommend!!
Harshini S.
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Elizabeth J.
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Janine C.
says
Amazing story, beautifully filmed, best Australian Movie I've seen, explains a lot.
Chris H.
says
good movie though I didn't like the ending much
Rachel M.
says
Interesting storyline, how events are viewed in a totally different way depending on upbringing, sex, and attitude.
Rachael F.
says
An eery look into the black depths of the human soul, and how in the end we can all find forgiveness.
Another fantastic Australian film, makes me proud to be an Aussie.
Frances A.
says
Good Australian movie, great storeyline and again portrays the aboriginal customs like Ten Cannoes. Must see.
Joanna P.
says
I found it very slow and didn't answer all the questions.
Bruce W.
says
Very ordinary. Appeared to suffer from a low budget.
Rodney W.
says
Great Australian movie on our cultures, really good from start to finish, only down fall is it ended before the story line could really finish...
Janelle W.
says
Just awful, didn't go anywhere.
Stephenie K.
says
I'm going to be unpopular with this review and say that the movie wasn't worth watching. Luckily I had some furniture to put together while watching - so made the experience much more productive and enjoyable.
There was too much going on in this film in terms of great topics it tried to deal with, which meant that all topics were not explored indepth enough.
Great performances though.
Kerrie D.
says
Great movie. Brilliantly casted and acted. Loved the morals behind it.
Toni F.
says
Very dark, a bit depressing. Lots of good Aussie actors but the topic is very morose.
Darrin S.
says
It was OK, glad I waited for it to come onto DVD rather than waste $15 at the cinema.
Kathleen T.
says
gol
says
2+. Want to support Australian film industry. For mine this one missed the boat despite all the promotional hype. Very slow, going nowhere for a long time, one dimentional basic plot. Imported lead actors tried hard but did not have much to work with. Scenery beautiful ......best part really.
Leslie M.
says
it was a brillant movie.thrilling from start to finish.a credit to the australian film industry.
Harry M.
says
Superb film. Brilliant adaptation with some incredible ideas thrown in. Very well made with superb perfomrances from everyone. Well worth watching.
boy
says
Oh dear!
I began watching this with high hopes but eventually the slow pace and the
less than credible driver for the story overwhelmed me.
I rarely don't finish a movie but with this one I just couldn't make it to the end
Rhoda J.
says
An interesting look at moral dilemmas and how differently people view the same issue. Beautiful scenery. Left a lasting impression, which is more than you can say for a lot of movies these days.
Stephen M.
says
Typical australian drama/thriller. Deleted scenes are worth watching as they give a little more insite into certain aspects of the film that are puzzling yet yet noty covered by the final cut of the movie
Stephen R.
says
A poor plot with nowhere to go helps this movie fail.
Stingerea
says
What a great movie, expertly made. Always admired the song and with the help of Gabriel Byrne, now a fantastic movie which shows the real Australia not the 'Hollywood' version. Don't miss the extra's on the disc
Tom H.
says
Susan M.
says
You can't go past a good Aussie movie and "Jindabyne" was exactly that! It had an excellent cast and the story actually made me stop and think. There are probably lots of crimes being committed in the Australian outback that we never hear about. This movie is well worth a look.
Elizabeth H.
says
I did not mind it, but got irratated by the way scenes closed off very quickly and then jumped to something else. However the acting was good,the suspense well done, but the ending left us a bit up in the air.
Henk H.
says
Get the caffeine ready!!
Unfortunately, typically Australian.
Shelley B.
says
David P.
says
Slow, tedious and boring. I watched all the movie hoping it would get better but it got worse. The end was totally unsatisfactory.
Michael G.
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Marjory J.
says
Very slow.
Kerrie W.
says
Thought it was good, I don't usually like aussie films too much but this was good.
Alison M.
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Patricia H.
says
Long, boring and goes nowhere, only watch if you're really desperate, on second thoughts, not even then.
Trent H.
says
It's worth watching, but start your viewing early in the evening as this one is slow to get moving.
There are some interesting moral questions asked and an insight into Australian culture
Lynn O.
says
After all the hype, I finally watched this movie. I thought the scenery was just fantastic. The storyline was good, with a lot of mystery and intrigue, but the one thing I can't get over, is, I jus can't believe there are men out there, that could still have a boys weekend bonding trip with a dead body floating nearby! I'm glad I watched it tho
Jennifer W.
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Faraday M.
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Donna M.
says
Interesting but slow , thankgoodness for the fast forward button.
Annette B.
says
Not much to the story. Very slow.
Vick
says
This movie was so slow and very hard to get into. The all star Australian cast didn't really do justice to the confusing plot and long time it took to get to the point. Very disappointing.
Cynthia R.
says
worth it
Clive M.
says
Barbara C.
says
Great cast of Aussie Actors and the scenery is excellent. Story line a little lacking in places but a good watch.
Kristi
says
I sat through the whole of the movie thinking that the end might be worth it but I was wrong. The 1 star is for the scenery only... An absolute waste of time.
Malcolm M.
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David H.
says
Very dissapointing after great photography,poor story and poor acting and atrocious ending.
John F.
says
Even if it had nothing else going for it it has Debra Lee Furness. Good stuff.
Richard R.
says
Hilton S.
says
Wonderful shots of Australian landscape. Clunky story didn't quite get the reason for non-australians as lead characters.
roly
says
Suspenseful, many layered murder story set in the Snowy Mountains during the warmer months. Good performances from the cast, bringing out the characters`flaws maintain an uneasy feeling throughout the movie.
The aboriginal element in the film is sensitively portrayed and reflects society as it is to-day. Echos of the Joanne Lees case subconsciously permeate the events. Great Aussie movie!
Judi W.
says
dentydog
says
Thought this was a good movie a cross between "Picnic at Hanging Rock" and "Wolf Creek" in parts a bit slow took a while to get going, the acting was good, scenery awesome, but the ending pathetic.
Sandra N.
says
elliyeti
says
Beautiful scenery with beautiful music, a country town whose occupants have unspoken personal issues and where staring into the distance is a substitute for dialog. Boring and pointless. Why does the Australian movie keep churning these out?
Vicki S.
says
Ged R.
says
Real stories of dysfunction between men and their women; of the struggle facing a partner of a person having a mental illness; but most of all you've gotta love the sparse atmospheric vocal music in Melburnian Paul Kelly's score.
Kerry M.
says
This is as mentioned before a Lantana type story, although, the Hype Id heard about the Movie didnt come up to scratch in the end. I found myself wanting to watch further to see how it all would end...and I was a bit dissapointed....
"Is that it?" I said to myself at the end of the film
Oh But I havent been able to stop thinking about this movie....a good sign,so watch it as a character analysis and not a murder mystery and you'll love it.
Dean C.
says
The sleepiness was somewhat unsettling,the movie was slow in some places.Overall I enjoyed the movie with the use of sound to create a sense of suspense did not surpass movies like Picnic at Hanging Rock.
gothecow
says
Absolute rubish,hard to watch slow and deliberate acting with too many quiet pauses between dialogue and a typical Australian overdone movie in terms of trying to be too high brow in method acting and picnic at hangin rock intrigue without the class of that movie. Some really good actors given a terrible script and direction..sorry ooooohhh badddddd....
Brian L.
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Marcus H.
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Stephanie C.
says
Quite confronting and a little dark but excellent viewing
Wendy N.
says
Enjoyed this movie very much. Great to see so many of our aussie actors all together. An absolute must see.
Bradley W.
says
Terrible. Painfully slow with a stupid ending. Very disappointing.
Leeza H.
says
Worth watching
Jane D.
says
Sandra T.
says
Looked good at first but the movie was very drawn out, a disappointment.
Malinda G.
says
such big hype about this and it was nothing to rave about at all
Graham T.
says
Ending was too abrupt. Wanted to know more...presumably this would be ideal for a sequel
Doreen C.
says
We enjoyed this movie immensely. The score was hauntingly beautiful, the acting great and the story very good.
Sian H.
says
Not great. not very exciting.
Linda W.
says
I found the ending a little disappointing.
Gail G.
says
Anthony B.
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Mark L.
says
:)
Frances A.
says
Disappointed, after the reviews we were expecting better
fterrey
says
Thought that this movie was a big disapointment. Did not live up to the expectations that I had of an Aussie movie. Very slow movie and nothing was resolved by the end of it
Helene C.
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Emma J.
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Mary A.
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Helen I.
says
Brilliant movie, very much like Picnic at Hanging Rock with the music, camerawork and lighting. Creepy. Not faced paced, but suited the life of a small town very well. Really good characters.
Janet L.
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Stephen B.
says
Aileen A.
says
Maybe if you like borring yourself
Marcus B.
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Di H.
says
Badly conceived and poorly executed, JINDABYNE built up tension in the early scenes for far too long, then didn't live up to them.
Inze
says
Incredibly slow. I found the movie frustrating to the point of wanting to switch it off, however I patiently persisted without reward. I'd leave it on the shelf.
Bev M.
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Stefano B.
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Stella T.
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russell1981
says
After his brilliant adaptation of Andrew Bovell?s "Speaking in Tongues" in LANTANA, it?s almost as if director Ray Lawrence went searching for a similar story ? four adult relationships, a seemingly random death and the sudden and unpredictable reverberations. Aesthetically, it?s every bit as good as LANTANA; the ripple effects in the experiences of each character are as unforeseeable and as devastating. The structure of the film itself is less ?linear?; in crude terms, we almost see two different films. The narrative makes a violent turn when the local Indigenous people react to the disrespect the men showed the deceased girl?s body. Prior to this turn, the film is a brilliant and searching drama surrounding four couples; afterwards, the film describes with startling accuracy the messy state of race relations in John Howard?s anti-reconciliation Australia. Comparisons with LANTANA are inevitable: same director, similar story. This is a pity; because of the earlier film?s perfection, this somehow doesn?t seem as good. But it is good ? very good. The main valid criticism seems to be that the on-screen emotion isn?t translated to the viewer in the way we?ve come to expect of Lawrence. Purcell continues an extraordinary run in some of the most powerful recent feature films made in Australia: in addition to this and LANTANA, she appeared in SOMERSAULT and THE PROPOSITION.
Emma J.
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Helene C.
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jane
says
After reading and see reviews I was keen to see this Australian film. But I am afraid I was totally bored, was wondering when they were going to actually catch the killer, but alas we were left hanging. Very disappointed with the ending. I was left high and dry......
Marco A.
says
Worth watching for the scenery but not a great film.
says
Just proves my opinion that the majority of Australian movies are crap!
Jan D.
says
Very real moral,social and racial issues. It's good to be reminded to be humane to our fellowmen regardless of race,color and creed.
Karoline R.
says
Don't do it! Unfortunately it was sooo slow and soo boring. The acting was fine but the story was frustrating, slow and the characters didn't really go any where. I wan't those two hours of my life back please!
Ronald T.
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Shaun O.
says
Fantastic study on a moral delimma
Jim P.
says
Great performances are the only redeeming feature of what is an otherwise unfocused and disappointing movie. What made the original Raymond Carver short story, upon which this is based, and Altman's movie version in Short Cuts so effective was the economy of the story-telling. But by padding out the narrative with multiple sub-themes, Ray Lawrence loses what made this tale so powerful in the first place. It is apparent that he went into this without a clear idea of what sort of movie he intended to make. At one level it is a straight Deliverance-style thriller, at another a musing on a marital crisis and on yet another a study in the contrast of Aboriginal and European attitudes to death. Don't bother.
Larry O.
says
It started many threads but did not seem to follow them all. The scenery is excellent (but then I like Australia and am biased).
Kerrie E.
says
Good Australian movie, great acting, a bit slow to start but story line kept me watching, glad I did, I liked the ending.
Janet E.
says
Most unusual
Maureen E.
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jay de divre
says
fails due to a non existant moral dilema -would anybody really leave a dead body lying around for three days? so, no suspense, no engaging subplots, just annoying histrionics. pity- Lantana, the directors previous film, was really good.
Monica C.
says
Roy F.
says
good film but rotten ending
W Roger K.
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Brian B.
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Camille H.
says
Great scenery but slow plot and a bit 'out there'. Best acting wasn't by our Aussie's but by Byrne & Linney. Highly anticipated but a bit of a let down.
Jodi M.
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Joan M.
says
A bit disappointed with the ending but overall a worth watching movie!
Jan B.
says
intriguing, an attention holder
Peter J.
says
I often like this style of sombre Australian drama, but this was a tad too slow with not enough engaging depth to the characters.
Sara F.
says
Strange that with so many talented Australian actors out there, the producers felt the need to use foreigners for the title roles. This made it that much harder to believe the story.
Felt the whole movie really lacked something. Not one to watch if you're already feeling a bit down! Its not exactly a cheery film.
Chantal F.
says
Very intriguing but a bit anti-climactic.
Jeffrey N.
says
It's still worth a look.
Jillian M.
says
Interesting subject but handled clumsily.
Noreen W.
says
Not a great or bad movie. The reviews made it out to be better than it actually is. Ok to watch if there is nothing better
parfy
says
Beautifully photographed in the wonderful Snowy Mountains area, with good parts played by all the actors, but a bit slow moving and with a quite unsatisfactory ending. Not as good as I was expecting it to be after all the great write-ups, but I did enjoy the haunting music played throughout.
Tracey L.
says
To be honest, I had heard such high praise for this movie, that this may have contributed to my dissapointment. Australian movie makers seem to have settled into this genre of making heavy gritty dramas about real, and not necessarily likeable characters - Somersault is an excellent example. I found this very slow paced and I can't say I got a whole lot out of it. I have enjoyed performances by Gabriel Byrne in the past, but I can't say this was a great role for him and Laura Linney does nothing for me. As a previous reviewer commented, maybe the lead roles would have been better suited to Aussie actors?
Lisa H.
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Lesley L.
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Eva L.
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Linda H
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Not as good as I thought it would be from what I had heard about it. Still worth a look though.
twigg
says
etremley good movie, beautiful scenery,colour,shows parts of Australia none of us would ever see, story line gentle,hard,unforgiving,forgiving,insight into aboriginal culture many of us never get to know or see, shows anger and forgivness,a lesson we can all learn from. Characters typical of the area, acting superb,the only problem i had was in some places a little "slow" and of course the language which is in almost everything we watch these days, but i can see that it is part and parcel of the syoryline.
Barbara S.
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Cathie B.
says
Fascinating!
Billy
says
Well made movie with great cast particularly Laura Linney. Very atmospheric with a mystical feeling. I liked the setting around the Snowy Mountains. Reminded me of Picnic at Hanging Rock. Plot seemed to jump around a bit but overall very viewable.
Chris K.
says
Ray Lawrence's "Lantana" was not just a great Australian movie but a film that can hold its head high against all comers, one of the great relationship movies. His followup, Jindabyne, can't be placed into the same category.
I knew I'd seen the basic premise before but I had to look it up to remember that it featured as one of the intertwined stories in Robert Altman's Short Cuts, one of my favourite movies.
The story of a group of fishermen who go away for a weekend of male bonding and good times, to be rudely interrupted at an early stage by the discovery of a female body in the river, is given the full treatment here as opposed to an Altman subtext, but I'm not sure much more is achieved.
Aboriginal culture is invoked and ever-present here, supported by Paul Kelly's haunting score, but it seemed gratuitous to me, an excuse to flesh the story out beyond what Altman made of it.
And while I admire Laura Linney and Gabriel Byrne, why weren't Australians cast in the major roles? Surely we have progressed past the stage of having to supply overseas "stars" to justify funding?
This movie has lots to recommend it; it's beautifully photographed, nicely acted and provokes all sorts of uncomfortable thoughts about what we would do in a hypothetical situation. But to me it fails in the final analysis, because I simply didn't care enough about any of the characters to knock me off my feet.
Jennie A.
says