Synopsis:
Set in northern Australia before World War II,
an English aristocrat who inherits a sprawling
ranch reluctantly pacts with a stock-man in
order to protect her new property from a
takeover plot. As the pair drive 2,000 head of
cattle over unforgiving landscape, they
experience the bombing of Darwin, Australia, by
Japanese forces firsthand.
The Freak's Rating:
B+ : Every time I write a review I go back
to the site's grading scale for reference (as I
wish some of my users would do as well).
Australia is a good movie. I might watch
it again and would recommend it. All three
variables equal a B. I would not consider
it amazing, must own and watch again and again
so it stays out of the A range.
Having done one of my most hated movies of all
time, the remake of Romeo And Juliet, Baz
Lurhman had a long way to go to impress me.
He has garnered my respect as a director with
his style, even though I feel it is a tad over
the top at times. Studio heads should take
notice and put the man in check on creative
license. There are some set designs that
appear to be out of a high school play (first
campfire scene in particular). There are
also some wide shots consumed mostly of green
screen additions that look incredibly fake,
generating a "come on!" from me while screening
the film.
Australia is the latest teaming of director Baz
Lurhman and his muse, Nicole Kidman. The
two first teamed up on Moulin Rouge to a raging
success, so when a heroine needed to be cast in
an epic love story, Lurhman didn't look long.
There is a moment in the film where a kiss is
captured so beautifully on film that I wanted to
cheer. Romance is quite difficult to film
and Lurhman did an excellent job with every
aspect of doing so.
Acting is well done in this film, to the point
where you almost feel like you're among good
actors, which you should never feel if done
right. Kidman is wonderful as Lady Sara
Ashley and Hugh Jackman is a perfect counterpart
in Drover. The shining acting job in the
film is by the child star, Brandon Walters, as
Nullah. The young aborigine boy is
adorable in the film and pulls your heartstrings
at will.
Action, drama and history blend into this epic
film nicely. Had you cut out about 15
minutes of the film, the pacing would have been
nice throughout. As it stands at 2 hours
and 25 minutes, there are a few lulls and too
much separation between acts to merit an A.
Acting is well done, dialogue is nicely written
and delivered, but a little too much ego from
the director and a few extra minutes keep it
from getting an A. Still, it is borderline
buy-worthy and many may feel it is the best film
of the year for its ability to intertwine a
western feel with a sweeping war film and
romance.
Jen's
Rating: B+ : I really liked this movie.
Doesn't get an A because I don't know if it's
one I'd want to own. It was, however, too
long! It was almost like 3 movies in 1 with
lots of different story lines. There was the
romance, the boy plus the cows. It was a lot to
take in. Great acting by all, Hugh Jackman was
very easy on the eyes too :) It's a tear jerker
and it's long but it's worth it in the long run.
Joyce's Rating:
A- : If a movie gets me to pump my fist and
make me shed tears, I have to give it an A- I
would watch it again but I don't think I would
own it.
The acting by Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman and
especially Brandon Walters was superb. It was a
little long but I liked the length.
Sebastian's
Rating: B+ : when i first heard there was a
movie about my homeland austrlia, i was
thrilled. but i didn't expect it to be like
this... romance thingy...
However, this movie was ok and it's going to
create great tourism numbers for austrlia. i
still think they should of done another
crocidile dundee sort of thing haha
Alex's Rating: A : Anyone who reads my
review probably isnt going to see the film for
the reasons that attracted me. I was
thrilled when I heard that it was going to be
nearly 3 hours. Cinemas really lack long films
nowadays. They do it for the money, while
audiences forget that these films are only so
long because they have a long and worthy story
to tell.
Also, I wanted to see Hugh Jackman in something
other than X - Men. Nicole Kidman also stars in
this film. I had seen her in an advert on the TV
for 'Chanel', she was sexy and hauntingly
beautiful. I wanted to see her do some serious
acting. The two craft an irresistible
performance. At first they are distant, but they
slowly become friends, and finally, lovers.
Another reason that drove me to see this film
was the man who directed it. Twelve years ago,
he directed 'Romeo and Juliet', a classic play
by my absolute, all time favourite author,
William Shakespeare.
Luhrmann had updated the action of the play, and
skilfully transformed a romantic classic into a
crime thriller. I did hate it the first time i
saw it, but i then studied this film in school,
and it grew on me. Would Australia be as
good as i expected? No. It was WELL
better!
It was deep, thought provoking, complex,
intriguing, humorous, heartbreaking, disturbing,
tense, action packed, breathtaking, the actors
lived their roles, the director yet again shows
off his masterful talent of trendy and
exhilarating camera angles which transport you
from the cinema and make you feel as though you
are there.
Its safe to say that this is the new 'Gone With
The Wind'. The film has had bad reviews.
You should ignore these reviews, as the critics
probably only loathed the running time of two
and three quarter hours, which quite frankly,
flies by! Im not huge on this particular
type of film, but i would love to devote another
3 hour slot to Nicole Kidman and Baz Luhrmann.
I must warn you, however, that this is not for
the faint hearted. Without spoiling the plot, i
have seen Final Destination and A Clockwork
Orange, and still found this film rather
terrifying.
So, if youre up for a few hours of unforgettable
adventure, this is the film for you!
Enjoy!
Brian's Rating:
C+ : I thought that this was a decent movie,
but it was not as good as I had hoped. The
running time is only a problem because the
storyline is a problem. There were a multitude
of story arcs going on, but there were primarily
2 of them that could have composed 2 different
120 min. movies and likely worked out fine.
However, I do not think they were integrated all
that well into a single movie. About 90 minutes
into it, it felt like it was ending... then
there was another pseudo-ending before the
actual conclusion happened. Meanwhile, the
story kind of meandered around and left be bored
and uncaring. The point was to have it tied
together with the kid, but I have to say that I
was not impressed. As the story wandered
around, I lost interest, and that is when I
started checking my watch.
There are quite a few good things to see in this
movie, and I echo most of the previous reviews.
The lead actor and actress were amazing, and the
kid actor did a good job also. There are many
touching scenes in the movie and the protective
grandfather is endearing. Its hard to talk
about this movie without spoiling it, but I
would say that I am glad I saw it. I don't
think I would recommend it to people, but it was
not a waste of my 3 hours.
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