Yes, it’s great to see all the new films pouring through the cultural gates of the the Sydney Film Festival, but it’s also great to get the chance to revisit an acknowledged masterpiece, particularly if you were unwise enough to miss its initial big screen outing. Here are five old school works making the scene at the SFF that it behooves you to make time for – especially if you weren’t born when they first came out.
Bliss
Based on the novel by Peter Carey, Ray Lawrence’s 1985 film remains as controversial and divisive now as it did on first release. After he dies, Harry Joy (Barry Otto) wakes up in what appears to be a hellish parallel of his actual life – his wife is cheating on him, his son is a drug dealer, and everything around him is venal, cruel and callow. Charting a satirical, allegorical path, the film follows Harry’s attempts to find peace and redemption in a world where such qualities may not exist. The print has been fully restored by the Australian National Film and Sound Archive, and director Lawrence and producer Anthony Buckley are guests of the festival.
The Boys
Starring David Wenham, Anthony Hayes and Jon Polson, director Rowan Woods’ The Boys is a horrifying look at systemic, generational, crime, violence and misogyny. At the time, David Stratton described it as “A chilling, corrosive depiction of the banality of evil, Rowan Woods’ powerful debut film essentially covers a 24-hour period as it depicts the events leading up to a never-seen, but evidently hideous, crime. Boasting extraordinary performances, and an intensity that is at times almost unbearable…” This is a newly restored print, and woods and producer Robert Connolly are guests of the festival.
Essential Scorsese
We’re cheating a little here, but how could you pick just one? David Stratton has curated an entire season of Martin Scorsese classics, encompassing Mean Streets, Alice Doesn’t Live Here Any More, Taxi Driver, New York, New York, Raging Bull, The King of Comedy, Goodfellas, Age of Innocence, Casino, and The Aviator. No The Last Temptation of Christ, sadly, but that’s quibbling.
Michael Collins
Neil Jordan’s account of the life and struggle of the eponymous Irish revolutionary drew mixed responses on its initial release, but is well overdue for reappraisal. 2016 being the centenary of the Easter Rising and the 20th anniversary of the film, what better time. Pre-geriactioner Liam Neeson is in excellent form as the reluctant soldier, supported by a great ensemble including Aidan Quinn, Stephen Rea, Alan Rickman and Julia Roberts.
Tokyo Story
Yasujiro Ozu’s elegant, deeply affecting masterpiece tells the story of the three generations of a Japanese family in 1950s Tokyo. When an elderly couple visit their urban family, they find that only their widowed daughter-in-law (Setsuko Hara) has any time for them. A stately, deliberately paced work where every angle and every moment is redloent with subtle meaning, Tokyo Story is essential viewing.
The Sydney Film Festival runs from June 8 – 19, 2016. For full info and tickets, head to the official site.
