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Jack Sargeant visits the Adelaide Film Festival
Jack Sargeant on the Big Pond Adelaide Film Festival 2009
My plan is a simple one, head to Adelaide for the BigPond Adelaide Film Festival for the second weekend and watch movies. The festival boasts an investment fund and has had a hand in eleven of the Australian movies being screened, creating a real buzz about the function and role of the festival (of those I see Samson And Delilah, Last Ride and Lucky Country have all benefited from this fund, as have numerous other movies including My Year Without Sex, My Tehran For Sale and Salt).
Thursday, 26 February
Tonight sees the world premiere of Van Diemen's Land, directed by Jonathan auf der Heide. This is a beautifully rendered telling of the Alexander Pierce story, following the group of Irish and Scottish convicts as they escape the brutal penal colony and head deep into the all consuming bush. The haunting nature of the landscape and the vulnerability of the men is emphasised further by the camerawork that seems to be peering around trees at the struggling escapees as they are consumed by both the environment and their own madness. Avoiding the gore and splatter approach, the movie instead offers a tale of desperate and terrified men forced into making horrendous decisions taking on a perspective that owes as much to examining the psychology of men struggling in extreme danger as the historical details.
Friday, 27 February
In the morning there's time to see Samson And Delilah, which focuses on two indigenous teenagers living in a remote community. With relentless reggae beats playing in the background Samson passes his days sniffing petrol while Delilah looks after her frail, ailing artist grandmother. The two youths begin a relationship that is almost immediately consumed by troubles. Directed and written by Warwick Thornton - who also made the shorts Green Bush and Nana - the film's young amateur cast offer standout performances throughout. Although dealing with often painful and complex social issues the movie never falls into simple moralising or crude political posturing, offering instead a belief in the redemptive potential of love. The film is the first of a number that showcase young actors.
Glendyn Ivin's (whose short Cracker Bag won the Palme d'Or at Cannes) debut feature - Last Ride - sees Hugo Weaving in excellent form as a troubled ex-con travelling through the outback with his ten-year old son, played with incredible intensity by Tom Russell. Part road movie and part hardboiled thriller this film maintains a palpable tension throughout. With an atmosphere of brooding violence bubbling just below the surface, both father and son try and come to terms with their pasts, the present and the inevitability of their shared future.
Saturday, 28 February
The final Australian premiere of the festival is Lucky Country directed by Kriv Stenders (who was also responsible for Boxing Day). This Australian period thriller cum ‘western' tells the story of recently widowed settler Nat (Aden Young) and his two children, fighting to survive on a meagre outback property in early 20th century Australia. A brutal existence made all the more terrifying with the arrival of a trio of ex-soldiers turned gold prospectors.
True Australian gothic, Lucky Country examines the nature of friendships and family against a backdrop of brutal colonialism and greed. The claustrophobia and isolation of Nat's smallholding is visually emphasised by the ever present, endlessly verdant deathly bush. A powerful script and haunting score serve to create a brooding atmosphere which is matched by brilliant performances.
In some sense Lucky Country, Last Ride and Van Dieman's Land share a sensibility in which the land itself leaves its mark on the psyches of the protagonists.
That's a wrap, Sunday 1 March.
While my viewing over the last two days seemed to focus on gritty Australian cinema, there was a much wider range of films on offer, including the documentary Soul Power (dir Jeffrey Levy-Hinte) which details the musical performances that accompanied the Ali vs. Foreman Rumble In The Jungle. These performances showcased the best in African American and African music and feature an awesome James Brown alongside Hugh Masekela and Miriam Makeba amongst others, all punctuated with an interview with Muhammad Ali. ‘I'm Black And I Am Proud' never sounded so good.
American indie documentary We Are Wizards (dir Josh Koury) tells the story of Harry Potter fans, focusing on bands such as Harry and the Potters who perform Potter inspired songs and the hilarious Brad Neely who performs his own narration to the first Potter movie. A real crowd pleaser and a highly entertaining documentary.
As midlife crisis films go, JCVD (dir Mabrouk El Mechri) is a bizarre and hilarious study of Jean-Claude Van Damme as he returns to Brussels, in the middle of a messy separation. With no ready cash, the actor becomes caught up in a robbery, but all is not as it appears on any level. Unlike other midlife crisis films (for example Sly Stallone's recent tired offerings in Rambo and Rocky Balboa) JCVD actually works, celebrating the absurdity of the action hero even while engaging (and subverting) the audiences' expectations.
The festival closed with the announcement of the winner of the Natuzzi Competition which went to Korean movie Treeless Mountain directed by So-yong Kim.
But to my mind the true winners were the fans of Australian cinema who have some real treats in store when these films are released later in the year.
http://www.madman.com.au/actions/catalogue.do?releaseId=12109&method=view&webChannelId=8
http://www.adelaidefilmfestival.org
