Baz Luhrmann's Australia
We finally saw the nearly three hour film Australia last evening after a drive out to tour Red Hawk Casino, and then dinner - peel & eat shrimp and “lazyman” cioppino - at Powell’s Steamer Co. & Pub in Placerville. Ran into our friend Candy there listening to live jazz. Yep, we covered a lot of ground but it felt good to blow off a little work related pressure and do something we don’t often get time for. Kind of a double feature weekend!
The film is a romantic action-adventure set in northern Australia prior to World War II and centers on an English aristocrat (Nicole Kidman) who inherits a ranch the size of Maryland. When English cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn drover (Hugh Jackman) to drive 2000 head of cattle across hundreds of miles of the country’s most unforgiving land, only to still face the bombing of Darwin by the Japanese forces that had attacked Pearl Harbor only months earlier.
The film wasn’t in wide release for long, so many of you may have passed it by. But if it’s still playing in your area - we had to drive out the the Century on Greenback, the only theater still showing it here - make a point to catch it on the big screen. A special treat: the kid who narrates the story and plays the half Australian Aborigine boy that is more or less adopted by Kidman’s character. He is wonderful!
Doug
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The young boy is Aboriginal Brandon Walters in his feature film debut. I agree, he stole the show for me too. I would have liked someone other than Jackman as the lead male and maybe even someone other than Kidman as the heroine, but they did a pretty good job. I loved the story and was glad that they allowed it to develop into much more than just a love story. Terrific movie, if you can find it in a theater, see it there.
It sure covers all the genres. It begins as a fish-out-of-water comedy, then changes into a western, then morphs into a romance, and finishes as a World War II drama. Something for everyone, even hints of "Gone With the Wind" and "The African Queen".
Well worth the cost of admission and one of my favorite movies of the year!!
the scenaries shown in this movie make me wanna visit Darwin and try out the outback lifestyle.
Australia, I wanna know you better :))
I’d like to go Australia some day and meet a magic man. What would he say to me? What could we teach each other? I wonder what he thinks of our civilization ... By the way, did anyone notice the very interesting baobab trees? (thank you, Discovery Channel!)
By the end of the movie, one line stuck to my mind: Pride isn’t power. Really? I didn’t know that. If pride isn’t power, I’m sure love is. No movie can prove me wrong!
This was one of my favorite movies of 2008 and probably 2009. I am sure there will be some Oscar nods. I would like to see the young aborigine boy get a nomination as best supporting actor but with being his first time out, the "academy" will probably make him wait. Very good movie.
It got better and better the farther in it got and that made me want it to continue longer (yes, longer!). I loved how it was developing. But it ended bittersweet with a good message.
I thought it was a bit old-fashioned and corny, not quite up to the director's usual high standards. But I admit that I still enjoyed it. It may not be Best Film, but it is certainly better than most of the dribble released in 2008.
Walters as Nullah is a great discovery. But the rest was pure soap opera.
I guess I will be the one to ask: What is "lazyman" cioppino?
Stephanie, it's cioppino with all the shells removed before serving. Steamer's serves a great version and, when I'm really hungry, I don't want to waste time fighting with shells. They offer it as "take out" as well and few things are better on a cold night. Yummmmm!
Doug
Love the country, loved the movie, want to go back!
This was a favorite movie of ours late last year and we both agree it will get nominated for an Oscar. I read that Nicole Kidman wasn't happy with her performance and I did think she struggled with playing the aristocrat in the beginning, but as she got into the grittier parts, she pulled it together and did her usual good job. Even Hugh Jackman did a pretty good job and the boy was terrific! The story was wonderful and the ending was uplifting. If you don't see it in a theater, rent it. It won't be the same on the small screen, but don't miss it.
It was no "Out of Africa" but still was a pretty good flick.
:)