Australia - how was it for you?
To those who have never lived in Australia, the names Margaret and David will not be instantly recognisable. Perhaps they might conjure up a folk band from the 1960s (but that was Peter, Paul and Mary) or a series of helpful how-to-read books that you might have perused as a child (although that was Janet and John).
For the uninitiated, Margaret and David are the Siskel and Ebert of Australia: the country's most famous and distinguished film reviewers, whose weekly programme, At the Movies, is appointment viewing for anyone in the industry, and for many outside it. I, for one, never miss it.
Margaret Pomeranz is a pixie-like bundle of energy, bubbly, infectious and kindly, who I reckon always gives Aussie movies an extra half a star. She's almost like a midwife to the home-grown movie industry, exhibiting maternal disapproval when films fall short and enormous motherly pride when they do well. David Stratton is more like the strict father, or a humourless headmaster perhaps, who, according to the title of his memoirs, once "peed" on Federico Fellini.
I mention all this because now that Baz Luhrmann's Australia is in general release, I want to give you the chance to play Margaret and David. Normally, we solicit your comments. Now we want your reviews.
I got a sneak preview of the movie the other night, and came out thinking that some of the Aussie reviews have been a bit mean-spirited and harsh. We'll save the discussion of the "cultural cringe" and the "tall poppy syndrome" for another blog, but the critical response to Australia might have provided glaring examples of both.
As one would expect from the director of Moulin Rouge and Romeo and Juliet, Baz Luhrmann's Australia is staggeringly beautiful. The staging is lavish, the score has an epic sweep, the cinematography is gorgeous and the film has what most Australian films have never been able to afford: towering ambition.
This is the most expensive film ever shot on Australian soil - and it looks like the most expensive film ever shot on Australian soil. The creative force behind it, Mark Anthony Luhrmann, is surely a national treasure. So, too, is his wife, Catherine Martin, the production designer of his films.
Much of the pre-release publicity, of course, focussed on the on-screen romance between Nicole Kidman, who plays a straight-laced British aristocrat whose family owns land at the Top End of Australia, and Hugh Jackman, who plays a rough-hewn cattle drover.
But the more intriguing plotline involves Nullah, the young Aboriginal boy played by 10-year-old Brandon Walters, who steals the movie. Serving as the film's narrator, Nullah is the guide as Luhrmann explores the breach between black and white Australia, and the misplaced sense of racial superiority that lay behind the Stolen Generations. In the hands of a lesser director, this could all have been a bit heavy-handed. But far stronger than Luhrmann's critique of white racial mores is the celebration of Aboriginal culture as proud, rich and ancient. In dealing with indigenous themes, some films have focussed solely on the negative: the decades of mistreatment and the myriad injustices. Australia is more affirming, and accentuates a sense of Aboriginal pride.
There are other things that the world could usefully take from this movie. Many global viewers will not be aware, for instance, that Darwin in the Northern Territory was attacked by the Japanese during World War II, a historical chapter which provides the cinematic coda. Then there's the performance of the relatively little-known Aussie actor, David Wenham, who plays the land-hungry villain of the piece. The Aboriginal actor David Gulpilil is mesmerising as "King George", Nullah's maternal grandfather. Reassuringly, we even get a five-second glimpse of the great Bill Hunter, whose role this time involves squeezing Nicole Kidman's bottom, a duty he performs with aplomb.
Certainly, there are flaws. Certainly, there are a few too many cliches and a few too many crikeys. In their portrayals of an uptight Pom and a down and dirty Aussie, Nicole and Hugh ham and camp it up a bit too much at the beginning. Watching the opening scenes, some might think that the pantomime season has come a few weeks early. To be fair, their performances are very affecting by the end.
Still, there's a strong likelihood that you might have forgotten the opening scenes by the closing credits, which speaks of another problem: Baz could surely have lost at least 15 of his 165 minutes somewhere along the way. One American critic has suggested the film comes with its own sequel (it actually could have been longer - Baz Luhrmann shot 2.7 million feet of film). It is indeed episodic, with four films packed into one: a romance, a western, a war flick and a tale of racial woe.
Some film-goers doubtless would have preferred Cate Blanchett, who does not appear in Australia, to have played the female lead. Peevish British viewers, like me, might bemoan another small, but presumably budget-busting, detail: the scene set in the English countryside was clearly not filmed in the English countryside. But I digress.
Perhaps Australia does fall short of being a classic or a masterpiece, as David Stratton has suggested, but there's a romantic lurking deep inside of me who came out thinking it had come pretty close.
So four stars from me. Now, over to you...
I'm 
© MMIX~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~39~RS~)
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One thing I dont understand, is the timing of the film's release. Surely the UK is one of the key targets of any renewed tourist campaign so why is it being released over month after the Australian release. Due to this fact I can't yet provide a review, without seeking out a dodgy DVD sales-man in one of the many London city pub's in london. However I still believe that the "where the bloody hell are you?" campaign was far more appealing and representative of Oz. - Well, it convinced me to emigrate to Oz in February next year, (Aussie wife may also have had something to do with our decision!!!).
Anyway Australia is filled of cultural steriotypes, some bad and some good and there is no getting away from that fact. This new advertising campaign / film appears to me to be what Australia thinks the world's perception of it should be, and to be honest though my mother always told me you should not judge a book by its cover; given the new Australia adverts, I don't thing my local cinema is going to recieve a visit from me on the 26th December!.
P.S Nick - an amusing Australian correspondent for the BBC you are!, - a film critic? well you may be or you may not. Only time will tell!
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Nick, you are obviously a film fruitcake. Unfortunately I couldn't give a stuff for films.
What about some in depth reporting about what the hell is going on in Australia.
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I agree with the above comment. If you can find some time between lounging on the beach, watching the cricket or reviewing movies do you think you can manage to tell us what's going on in Australia. As it is, I think this blog is the most pathetic waste of our BBC licence money.
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Hey, #2 & #3, give Nick a break. If you were here last week you'd know that the release of "Australia" appeared to be all that was going on, given the amount of hype it got.
I suppose he could have covered the dropping of paid Maternity Leave (they didn't feature that on the "Where the bloody hell are you" ads) and the short-termist approach to water supply here in a currently grey and very wet Sunshine State.
#1 may be interested to know that one of the commercial networks reported with some glee that the UK wouldn't get the film til after Christmas (implying that this would cause a national revolt).
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To all above, its a part of the media to cover a wide range of topics, Nicks blog on "Australia" is as valid as the one on the Navy , as valid the "Lucky Lucky Lucky" piece, being in Oz now reading the above comments ( talkingisgood, ianperfect,)Im looking at you guys )theres more to media reporting than a continual run of dry "basic" information, just to finish, Nick, (or "Nicko" as we might say,) I've enjoyed your blog on and off for a while now, after reading the comments of #2 and #3 I felt compeled to join and reply with my 2 cents, ( I miss the 2 cent coin,,,sigh).
ps. I won"t be wasting my time with this movie , this review said it all, http://www.avclub.com/content/cinema
#4, a national revolt? the only movie that would happen oner is if they made Mad Max4 staring Kerry Ann.
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What I fail to understand is how the most urbanised western country in the world with the bulk of the population living in two cities is always displayed in films as " outback and desert " This is why tourism is not doing so well. When living in the UK I always liked to bring up perceptions of Australia to people who have never visited and often they just had a picture of a big open wasteland - devoid of any culture. This frustrated me. Australia's cities are often voted in the top 10 as the most liveable cities in the world along with Vancouver in Canada.. The cities are cleaner then our UK and American friends yet how often are they shown in our movies in contrast to the USA? Personally I am sick of Australia getting portrayed as the " open desert wasteland" when there is Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide and what about the lush green GREEN of TASMANIA, which was forgotten in one of the maps for the " AUSTRALIA"
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#5 I'm yet to experience Kerry Anne, but I think that it sounds like a great idea that you have had.
#6 Most urbanised western country is pushing it a bit, but I take your point, the international image of Australia is still Sydney, Uluru and Barrier Reef - Melbourne and Tasmania don't get much of a mention depsite being great places to visit. Perhaps this is because Europeans can visit similar sites at home (think Ireland and Paris), where as they can't go snorkelling on the Great Biscay Reef...
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It's just a movie. Nothing less, nothing more. it isn't the official history of our country; it isn't a critical examination of our way of life. It's a movie. It's aim is to entertain NOT inform. Chill out all of you and start thinking about more pressing issues.
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Haven't seen it so can't comment. From what I've read so far I think that when it comes to English ladies and knockabout Aussie blokes I'll stick with Virginia Mckenna and Peter Finch.
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With it's 100million budget, cliches, title name this film had better be good, Oscar nominated to be precise, otherwise it's going for one of the biggest falls in cinematic history. Anyway I won't be watching for one, the subject matter does not interest me, as does seating through nearly 3 hours of Nicole and Hugh.
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Haven't seen the movie yet but from the reviews it all sounds very "Bollywood" to me...
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Goodness, you Poms are uptight. There's no grand socio-political message in the movie. Relax, and enjoy Gone with the Wind crossed with Out of Africa mixed with Doctor Zhivago and a little bit of a Town Like Alice stirred with a pinch of African Queen. These sorts of grand epics did very well in the 30s during the last big economic downturn ? people love to escape reality... And why not?
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To number 2 and number 3 - I feel your comments and opinions about Nick are self opinionated trash and in my view totally unfounded. You seem not to get the ideam of a blog. I think Nick Bryant's blog is written, as it should be - a free thinking flow of ideasm, close tothe author chest in other words "a blog" and for me, Nick style is entertaining and opinionated. - As any 'blog' author should be. In my view, if you dont' like Nick's writing, then why don't you stop reading it. Further, in the hope of not being censored. - you could always " go away" and go do something else less boring instead" - to quote a kids program from the 1980's and allow us to enjoy Nick's scribing's without the profound negativity! I for one enjoy his blog and its mix of Aussie politics and social Antipodean commentary" - Keep it up Nick!!!!!!!! ;o)
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To number 2 and number 3 - I feel your comments and opinions about Nick are self opinionated trash and in my view totally unfounded. You seem not to get the idea of a blog. I think Nick Bryant's blog is written, as it should be - a free thinking flow of ideas, close to the author chest in other words "a blog" and for me, Nick style is entertaining and opinionated. - As any 'blog' author should be. In my view, if you don?t like Nick's writing, then why don't you stop reading it. Further, in the hope of not being censored. - you could always "turn off the T.V set and go do something else less boring instead" - to quote a kids program from the 1980's and allow us to enjoy Nicks scribing without the profound negativity! I for one enjoy his blog and its mix of Aussie politics and social Antipodean commentary" - Keep it up Nick!!!!!!!! ;o)
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You know, when I heard that Baz was working on a musical starring Nicole Kidman, I thought he'd lost the plot. But Moulin Rouge turned out to be the movie I fell in love with more than any other. If anybody can take a stupid sounding premise (not to mention the woodenest of wooden actors) and make it work, it's Baz. I'm looking forward to seeing this one.
And where's the Moulin Rouge Blu-Ray?
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Thanks Nick.
Curiosity will compel me to see the film "Australia" - the title is a bit over the top - the punters will think it is a National Geographic presentation!
On your reportage -
Nick old mate - now that the 'lucky country' is not so lucky with the mineral boom - what about the Ozzie public's reaction to the BHP-RIOTinto merger falling apart, the depressed prices of our mining giants etc.
What's happened to the Super funds?
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Well this is quite funny because not a single person has yet seen the movie on this blog. I won't be wasting my time or money on it either. As one rottentomatoes reviewer said, this movie comes complete with its own sequel. This is another 'epic' that I can live without.
Too long, too much money, too many 'crikeys'.
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"were the critics too harsh?"....who cares. Anybody who takes any notice of what they say has a pretty low intellect.
It never ceases to amaze me how someone can get so uptight about a movie and loose all sense of objectiveness about a simple entertainment package.
"Oh dear wasn't her hairdo awful" and nonsense like that. Film critics are a funny lot who hang onto the edges of the industry and feed off it as parasites. Never created anything themselves but criticize those that have.
Never go to the movies much but will have a look at this one just for the hell of it.
I'm not in the same camp as some who won't just because it has too many crikeys or whatever.
A lot of negativity here....experts without having seen the movie.
Any work of art has to seen as a whole package and not just pieces of it.
Personally I find myself focusing on the technical aspects as well as the story line.
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Well just saw the movie on James Street - Brisbane and it was horrid. This movie was targeted for the American audience as if to say they had not seen an ?Australian" movie before. Full of clichés and over the top slang. This does not represent the real Australia and most yanks know this. SHAME on this movie. Even the CGI when the cattle fell over the cliff looked like 1999 computer graphics. The money spent mixed with the sterotypes and bad CGI means 1 star. HOPELESS.
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OK, just got back from seeing it, and got to say I loved it. Luhrman is a storyteller who exercises his craft in heightened mythic worlds, in the tradition of Sophocles, Shakespeare, and Puccini. This story is populated by cliches, caricatures, icons, heroes, villains, lovers, and murderers. It's not social realism or history but it has something to say about both. As an Australian I feel as if I have just been handed a $200 million present from Luhrman. Go in with an open mind and a willingness to go with the storyteller and you will not be disappointed.
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I haven't seen the film, so can't comment on it. But I did think to comment on the mention of "cultural cringe". Wow! This is the first time I've seen this phrase in print for 8 years.
Growing up in Australia I remember "cultural cringe" as a phrase that appeared in media all through the '80s and '90s. But my personal experience was that it almost entirely vanished in a singular instant - with the opening ceremony of the Sydney Olympic Games. Pre-olympics, the phrase was everywhere, particularly in the dread-anticipation of what cringe-worthy icons might be displayed in the upcoming opening ceremony, which like all opening ceremonies had been kept strictly under wraps prior to the event. But in the event it's symbols were well received, and well - it seemed to me - almost overnight the "cultural cringe" was blasted to oblivion. Australians found a sudden and powerful reason to be proud, and the world saw it too.
I've lived in London for the past 3 years, so may have missed something in that time. But as far as I can recall, your mention of "cultural cringe" is the first I've seen in print in over 8 years. Does it really still exist?
What's more interesting is that I see many of the same things happening here in London prior to the 2012 games - the same steady flow of bad-news-it-will-cost-too-much stories, and we-won't-be-as-good-as-[insert nation here] stories. I'm not sure if I'll still be in London until 2012, but in case I am, I'm rather looking forward to seeing what happens here - will the UK's experience parallel Australia's?
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last night I went with friends here in the States to see Australia. I was very excited. I have lived in many countries in the world PLUS I worked for a time on a cattle station in northern Queensland as a cook for the jackaroos.
I was very aware of the history we have of treating the aboriginals as we did in the 70s. Why am I aware of this, because of the HUGE reconciliation movement within Australia for the past l0 years... of people meeting with the Aboriginals and asking their forgiveness. This has been a massive ongoing movement and so much has been accomplished by this great process. Of course none of this has taken the eye of the international press.... however the Australian people are very aware of this huge step in seeking healing.... much has been accomplished by the hard work undertaken.
So to watch with horror as this film disregarded all the healing that has taken place, and be transported back to the era as if nothing constructive has been done about the sad situation, made me very angry. It negated all the effort and time gone into make peace with our people. Instead it sought to slam the church as if nothing since then has changed. Shame on the ignorant Hollywood approach.
I did appreciate however, the depiction of how difficult life was in the outback... because it is... a tough beauty exists out there, where people are courageous and strong - men and women alike. When I worked on the Station, the Jackaroos were treated as third class citizens (be they white or black)... I wonder if that has changed at all. They worked from dawn till dusk (we cooked breakfast for them at 4 am and they came in at night around 6pm.. long long hours for not very much money.
I also appreciated the world knowing about the Darwin tragedy as it was real in space and time and did happen, a little known fact remembered outside australia. At the end credits they note that the Australian Prime Minister sought forgiveness in 2008 from the people, what a bosh... as I have said the movement for healing has been ongoing for the past l0 years or so and has been a very positive thing ... pity the writers did not do their homework better ... rather than continuing to bash the church, they could have taken this into account. Nicole shame on you for going along with this ... particuarly after you chose to get married recently in the same church... mixed values anyone?
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margiesalzman, your comments do not make sense. Why would a film set 70 years ago depict anything that has happened in the last 10 years? Then people would accuse it of not being true to the era it was set in.
Some logic would go a long way!
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Unlike a lot of people on here who seem to have written the film off as "too many crikeys" without even seeing it, I did actually go, and I really enjoyed it.
Maybe Baz made a mistake in calling it "Australia", because so many people seem to think it's meant to represent Australia or sum it up in some way. I took it as a film *set* in Australia 70 years ago, in the usual fantasy style that Baz L is known for, and I really enjoyed it, as much as I loved Moulin Rouge, etc.
Still, there appear to be many detractors who say it's full of ridiculous stereotypes and totally unrealistic. I personally wasn't here 70 years ago, so I'm in no position to judge (not that that has stopped any of the film's critics...).
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The film is OK, 7 out of 10 but not quite a classic epic, lets move on.
I would rather the BBC concentrate on important topics such as AC/DC past and current. Now that's the height of Oz culture.
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Agree with #27, the film rates about 7 out of 10, better than I expected from the hype
It begins as a kind of Outback 'African Queen' and like Katharine Hepburn in that film, Nicole's character in the early stages is a caricature. Things mellow as she interacts with the child, Nullah and I found that to be the major theme - Nicole's character is infertile and Nullah becomes her adopted son, yet to keep him will rob him of his Aboriginal identity and duplicate government policy of the era
Pluses were that Nicole gets to wear some nice frocks, the depiction of the bombing of Darwin, and the Academy Award goes to the cattle
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As a film, I thought this was typical Luhrman - style over substance, with caricatures rather than characters, and big, panoramic sweeping shots as opposed to up-close and personal. I'd love to get the chance to explain to Baz the concept of subtlety!
Generally, I think the film will do well as a PR piece for Australia the country, if only by doing nothing more than registering Australia in people's minds. I think most viewers are smart enough to realise that the landscape in the film are not the be all and end all in Australia, but obviously the outback is a major part of the tourist experience and as depicted in the film, might encourage a few travelers to visit! I also think that the film good enough to encourage viewers to check out the next big Australian film to come along.
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Dear Poster 2 and 3,
I refer to your posts:
# 2. At 3:58pm on 26 Nov 2008, ianperfect wrote:
Nick, you are obviously a film fruitcake. Unfortunately I couldn't give a stuff for films.
What about some in depth reporting about what the hell is going on in Australia.
# 3. At 9:29pm on 26 Nov 2008, TalkingisGood wrote:
I agree with the above comment. If you can find some time between lounging on the beach, watching the cricket or reviewing movies do you think you can manage to tell us what's going on in Australia. As it is, I think this blog is the most pathetic waste of our BBC licence money.
Smells like professional jealously to me. Are you both BBC journo's looking for a new posting?
Your strong views don't match the facts. Our government, our creative industry, our media and our diplomatic corp are all crossing fingers and toes over a film's success. The biggest splurge of Australia's tax payers money on a film/tourism marketing campaign is a worthy topic for discussion.
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"Australia" the movie was good entertainment, Baz is a showman after all. I hope people will go and see it before passing judgment. PS, a naughty joke doing the rounds, if Qantas merges with BA, will it be the Whinging Kangaroo? from Rosy at Kempsey.
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If much of the above is anything to go by this film is no more than one worn out cliche heaped upon another. I suppose if it makes Aussies feel 'tall poppyish' with some sort of inverted snobbery especially as regards English aristocrats, well that pretty harmless I suppose.
As regards Rosy's joke, if that a typical example of Aussie wit then bring back Dame Edna
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As an entertainment score 9.5
As a spectacle 9.5
As culturally significant 5
As for the title 2......"DOWN UNDER DROVER" perhaps (DUD...oops)
Just enough cliches
My wife like it more than me but she appreciates the mushy bits more.
Well done to all contributors.
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It was a tad predictable and in parts tacky but as entertainment it was not too bad.
3 & half stars.
However the overdramatising of the attack on Darwin was a bit dissapointing, will the public believe that it was factual?
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It was a tad predictable and in parts tacky but as entertainment it was not too bad. Very very Baz Lurham, I like his movies.
3 & half stars.
However the overdramatising of the attack on Darwin was a bit dissapointing, will the public believe that it was factual? Was Baz trying to do a Pearl Harbour? I also felt David Welham needed a handlebar moustach to twirl whilst being evil.
Great job by the boy but will he get anymore work? This country has a history of only casting aboriginals when you need an aboriginal. They are never just a neighbor or friend who happens to be aboriginal and that fact is not mentioned. In movies and on TV all aussies are white unless there is a specific need for them not to be.
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Despite strong performances by Brandon Walters, David Gulpilil and some of the supporting actors, this film reminded me that not all Christmas turkeys are table fare. The first 20 minutes were a cringeworthy caricature of Australia presumably aimed at US and British audiences. The film lacked coherent editing and rewrote history. The attack on Darwin was portrayed like Pearl Harbour with the addition of a fictitious Japanese landing. If Tourism Australia think they are going to attract visitors using this film, then they have probably 'done their dough'.
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Nick:
i never been to australia; from what i have seen of it, it seems to be a great place!
~~Dennis Junior~~
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The fact that this was a complete an utter flop showcases how bad of a ?film critic" Nick is and there is no justification for giving it 4 stars. Is it the fact that there was so much hype around this movie? Or you really thought this was a high quality movie (acting standards? and not over the top cliché *cough*, far from original or witty .... bad CGI for such a high budget) An example of that was the horrid cattle scene where computer graphics never looked so obvious. The Japanese bombing looked like a Hollywood Pearl Harbour with the absurdist explosions. Oh Wait is that a bunch of Japanese soldiers that have landed? RUBBISH... no integrity at all. If it was meant to be a big ?epic " it failed on all levels.... nice one Nick.
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I saw it in the UK on Saturday afternoon and the packed cinema seemed to enjoy it.
The opening part is camped-up pantomime (which Kidman struggles with and doesn't really suit the cinematography), the script is full of clichés, distortions and anachronisms (and what classic Hollywood Western or war film isn't?) but overall it made for a satisfying Saturday afternoon's entertainment of the sort they don't make much of any more.
The CGI issue could hardly bother anyone except the sort of geek who watches Star Wars repeatedly. The cattle scenes were effective enough despite the melodramatic staging.
But where were the cattle dogs?
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