Thoughts on Australia
Nov. 30th, 2008 11:02 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
junebuggedSo...
This is all behind a cut, because there ARE spoilers. SPOILERS! SPOILERS!
It's hard for me to remember everything I wanted to say now... I started this last night but didn't finish it because I thought I'd think of more / better things to say. But we all know how MY memory works...
I've read a lot of bad reviews of this movie, and I've got to say it - it wasn't as bad as I was expecting.
That said, it wasn't a masterpiece.
- I did NOT feel the 2 hours and 45 minute run time. The only reason I knew it was so long was the fact that I had to run to pee twice. But you know me and my bladder (very, very small).
- Hugh Jackman. Yeah, you knew I'd start with him. God, I never thought I'd say it, but I LOVED the beard. It worked really well for him. I wish I could say that he was the star of the movie, but that was stolen by the little boy who played Nullah. I'll get to that later. But first, more Hugh. I was annoyed that he was never given a name... only known as 'Drover'. But while his character's name may have been lacking, his performance wasn't. He poured everything into it, whether he was pulling off Clint Eastwood or Cary Grant. Every line was breathed with conviction, regardless of how poorly it was written. I can't say enough about how much I enjoyed him in this role. I just didn't enjoy every line he had to utter. "There's no place like it..." Okay, we GET the connection to the Wizard of Oz! Christ.
- Nicole Kidman. I don't think she was as bad as some of the reviews said... I thought she pulled off 'aristocrat' really well. I liked the chemistry between her and Hugh BEFORE they became lovers. I think this is because they're such good friends. So they showed comfort with each other... and the trust she put in him after pleading, "we can't let them win," and he promises "We won't." I think that came from the friendship they've had for at least a decade now... But that same friendship made the sloppy kisses and love scene uncomfortable for me. Now... people who go in not knowing about their friendship may have seen the scene differently, but to me... it felt like the big elephant wearing a tutu, playing the ukelele and dancing around their bed. I was also annoyed by the amount of work she's done to her face... while you could see her emotions in the way she carried her body, and hear it in the quiver of her voice, her face just didn't move the way it used to. That said, she had a few great moments... like when she sang to Nullah. And when she and 'Drover' started to open up to each other, and he disclosed who his dead wife was. Everything you needed to see of her reaction was in her eyes. And when she revealed why she has no children, the pain flashed across them in an instant.
- Brandon Walters ('Nullah'). Amazing. This little boy's eyes are so deep... they drew me in to his story. They pulled me into his narration. The connection between him and his on-screen grandfather (played by David Gulpilil) was stunning. Especially with his conviction in their spirituality: 'I will sing you to me.' What amazed me about Nullah was how trusting he was in The Drover and Lady Sarah (or Mrs. Boss, as he called her, which was really uncomfortable for me as their relationship became increasingly more like parent-child). I cried at the things he witnessed being done to his family by 'white people', and how his trust remained. Probably because he was wise enough not to associate skin color with a person's character. I'm sure that was another message that's just soaking in now.
- 'Daisy' Wenham is such a great villain. I love to hate him.
- I'm torn about one of the plot devices: the recurring 'Over the Rainbow' theme. Sometimes it was sweet, sometimes groan-worthy.
- It was the kind of movie that could have ended six times before it actually ended. I don't think it will win any editing nominations, as it could have been a LOT tighter. Some of it was breathtakingly beautiful, but I've never been to Australia. I can't say that it's what made me want to go - I already want to. A lot of the scenery felt like they could have been shot in the western US... It's not like I was expecting Ayers Rock or anything, just... I'm not sure.
- As for the racism, and the 'wounds' the movie was supposedly trying to 'heal'... I'm not really sure if it did that. I don't think that any movie ever could. I'm not even sure a lot of movie goers were thinking that deeply into it, unfortunately. While I found Nullah's grandfather - 'King George' - to be a gripping character that I had a deep respect for, is the wisdom of his family supposed to be erase their society's gross negligence of an entire culture? No, I don't think. it would... and maybe he never said he wanted it to.
- I KNOW I'm forgetting even more. OH. There's a point where there is such an extreme close up on Hugh that I turned to roomie and whispered, "Pluck your nose hairs, Hugh." And roomie whispered, "I'll pluck them..." to which I replied, "You'd like to pluck something else..." and the two of us cracked up snorting.
- We got focus-grouped, even though the movie had been out a few days... My roommate called it 'Excellent'... I went for 'very good', but there was no place to explain ourselves. Because I would have elaborated. Though I'm not sure if I would have included everything I've rambled about here.
- I'm not even sure how to end this. I think I was a bit thrown when it wasn't as tight and beautiful as Moulin Rouge, but expecting a lot worse than I got. And I'd really like the to get the score / soundtrack... especially if it has the Nullah's hauntingly beautiful song/chant, and his grandfather's beautiful chants.
- Finally, I think you should go HERE, and read![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
rm 's reaction to the movie. She's a big Baz Luhrmann fan, and is an amazing writer. And it's a different view than mine - unclouded by Hugh-lust. *g*
If you see it, I'd really love to know what you think.
This is all behind a cut, because there ARE spoilers. SPOILERS! SPOILERS!
It's hard for me to remember everything I wanted to say now... I started this last night but didn't finish it because I thought I'd think of more / better things to say. But we all know how MY memory works...
I've read a lot of bad reviews of this movie, and I've got to say it - it wasn't as bad as I was expecting.
That said, it wasn't a masterpiece.
- I did NOT feel the 2 hours and 45 minute run time. The only reason I knew it was so long was the fact that I had to run to pee twice. But you know me and my bladder (very, very small).
- Hugh Jackman. Yeah, you knew I'd start with him. God, I never thought I'd say it, but I LOVED the beard. It worked really well for him. I wish I could say that he was the star of the movie, but that was stolen by the little boy who played Nullah. I'll get to that later. But first, more Hugh. I was annoyed that he was never given a name... only known as 'Drover'. But while his character's name may have been lacking, his performance wasn't. He poured everything into it, whether he was pulling off Clint Eastwood or Cary Grant. Every line was breathed with conviction, regardless of how poorly it was written. I can't say enough about how much I enjoyed him in this role. I just didn't enjoy every line he had to utter. "There's no place like it..." Okay, we GET the connection to the Wizard of Oz! Christ.
- Nicole Kidman. I don't think she was as bad as some of the reviews said... I thought she pulled off 'aristocrat' really well. I liked the chemistry between her and Hugh BEFORE they became lovers. I think this is because they're such good friends. So they showed comfort with each other... and the trust she put in him after pleading, "we can't let them win," and he promises "We won't." I think that came from the friendship they've had for at least a decade now... But that same friendship made the sloppy kisses and love scene uncomfortable for me. Now... people who go in not knowing about their friendship may have seen the scene differently, but to me... it felt like the big elephant wearing a tutu, playing the ukelele and dancing around their bed. I was also annoyed by the amount of work she's done to her face... while you could see her emotions in the way she carried her body, and hear it in the quiver of her voice, her face just didn't move the way it used to. That said, she had a few great moments... like when she sang to Nullah. And when she and 'Drover' started to open up to each other, and he disclosed who his dead wife was. Everything you needed to see of her reaction was in her eyes. And when she revealed why she has no children, the pain flashed across them in an instant.
- Brandon Walters ('Nullah'). Amazing. This little boy's eyes are so deep... they drew me in to his story. They pulled me into his narration. The connection between him and his on-screen grandfather (played by David Gulpilil) was stunning. Especially with his conviction in their spirituality: 'I will sing you to me.' What amazed me about Nullah was how trusting he was in The Drover and Lady Sarah (or Mrs. Boss, as he called her, which was really uncomfortable for me as their relationship became increasingly more like parent-child). I cried at the things he witnessed being done to his family by 'white people', and how his trust remained. Probably because he was wise enough not to associate skin color with a person's character. I'm sure that was another message that's just soaking in now.
- 'Daisy' Wenham is such a great villain. I love to hate him.
- I'm torn about one of the plot devices: the recurring 'Over the Rainbow' theme. Sometimes it was sweet, sometimes groan-worthy.
- It was the kind of movie that could have ended six times before it actually ended. I don't think it will win any editing nominations, as it could have been a LOT tighter. Some of it was breathtakingly beautiful, but I've never been to Australia. I can't say that it's what made me want to go - I already want to. A lot of the scenery felt like they could have been shot in the western US... It's not like I was expecting Ayers Rock or anything, just... I'm not sure.
- As for the racism, and the 'wounds' the movie was supposedly trying to 'heal'... I'm not really sure if it did that. I don't think that any movie ever could. I'm not even sure a lot of movie goers were thinking that deeply into it, unfortunately. While I found Nullah's grandfather - 'King George' - to be a gripping character that I had a deep respect for, is the wisdom of his family supposed to be erase their society's gross negligence of an entire culture? No, I don't think. it would... and maybe he never said he wanted it to.
- I KNOW I'm forgetting even more. OH. There's a point where there is such an extreme close up on Hugh that I turned to roomie and whispered, "Pluck your nose hairs, Hugh." And roomie whispered, "I'll pluck them..." to which I replied, "You'd like to pluck something else..." and the two of us cracked up snorting.
- We got focus-grouped, even though the movie had been out a few days... My roommate called it 'Excellent'... I went for 'very good', but there was no place to explain ourselves. Because I would have elaborated. Though I'm not sure if I would have included everything I've rambled about here.
- I'm not even sure how to end this. I think I was a bit thrown when it wasn't as tight and beautiful as Moulin Rouge, but expecting a lot worse than I got. And I'd really like the to get the score / soundtrack... especially if it has the Nullah's hauntingly beautiful song/chant, and his grandfather's beautiful chants.
- Finally, I think you should go HERE, and read
rm 's reaction to the movie. She's a big Baz Luhrmann fan, and is an amazing writer. And it's a different view than mine - unclouded by Hugh-lust. *g*If you see it, I'd really love to know what you think.
