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Author Topic: Australian Cinema?  (Read 31117 times)

colonel_mexico

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Re: Australian Cinema?
« Reply #140 on: June 29, 2016, 11:29:29 PM »
LUCKY MILES 2007- I've only heard stories about what it is to cross the border and seek a new place to live and work.  And it certainly is a perilous journey across the deserts of California, New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas, but can you imagine how it would be to be dropped off by a boat in a desert in Australia? This story of immigrants being dumped on the northwest coast of Oz is one I hadn't even realized was an issue.  This is certainly a movie with a lot of heart and an interesting mix of cultures as an Asian man and an Iraqi man are thrust together in survival and become friends in spite of themselves. This is billed as a comedy and has plenty of lighthearted moments and interesting travel tales as the evil boat guys end up sinking their boat and finding themselves hiking into the Pilbara desert.  I enjoyed this immensely, but also wonder at the plights of so many people in the world seeking out better lives and willing to face death to find that life.  The movie does end on a high, cliff-hanging note and even if bittersweet. There is hope for this world with the knowledge of some good Aussies on the other side of the world willing just to give someone a ride.
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brianivory

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Re: Australian Cinema?
« Reply #141 on: January 18, 2017, 02:23:33 PM »
For me, "Walkabout" is timeless. "The Proposition" is a great film. I watch "Japanese Story" at least a couple times a year. Love the soundtrack as well. Most recently, I really liked "Tracks." It did not get much attention at the cinemas, but a great retelling of a true story. "Rabbit Proof Fences" is very good for a lot of reasons. In all of these movies, the landscape is so important to the story. "Animal Kingdom" was also outstanding.

jdc

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Re: Australian Cinema?
« Reply #142 on: January 19, 2017, 05:02:24 AM »
Japanese story a couple times a year?  It's good but I'm not sure I can imagine that.
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Tim

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Re: Australian Cinema?
« Reply #143 on: February 04, 2017, 03:10:34 PM »
If you want authentic Australian landscape then also try Samson and Delilah (2009, Warwick Thornton)

Trailer is a bit crap - I don't even recall that music in the film, it is mostly a very quiet film, except for when the band is practicing.

https://youtu.be/N69RgtW6S8o
"Only cinema narrows its concern down to its content, that is to its story. It should, instead, concern itself with its form, its structure." Peter Greenaway

Dave the Necrobumper

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Re: Australian Cinema?
« Reply #144 on: June 26, 2017, 07:24:06 AM »
Turkey Shoot (1982 - Brian Trenchard-Smith) 




A classic 'Ozplotaition' film from the 1980s. Brian Trenchard-Smith sets the scene, then just gets on with the fun. Lots of familiar faces from Australian TV in the film, notably Noel Ferrier (the visiting camp inspector), Gus Mercurio (guard with the whip), and Michael Craig (the camp captain). There is also Olivia Hussey (star of 1968's Romeo and Juliet).
I liked how the camp captain is Captain Thatcher (definitely a dig and the UK PM of the time).
This is a prison camp movie, with what you would expect from a exploitation film.
Things I am impressed with at the camp: the huge amount of space the prisoners get, bunk beds must have been too expensive. How bad the auto-guns were at hitting anything. How many guards turned up at the end to be shot.

Best bit, the introduction to the "werewolf".

A definite recommend from me.

Rating: 78/100

colonel_mexico

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Re: Australian Cinema?
« Reply #145 on: June 26, 2017, 02:03:16 PM »
Olivia Hussey nice! I'll have to see if I can track that one down. Haven't seen much Oz stuff lately, though I did catch THE DRESSMAKER, but haven't written anything.  Cool review Dave!
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1SO

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Re: Australian Cinema?
« Reply #146 on: June 26, 2017, 03:47:32 PM »
I know of Turkey Shoot, but it seems like a cheesy version of Most Dangerous Game. That's probably what it is and the Ozplotaition cheese is probably part of the fun, but I feel like I'll be groaning more than enjoying. Your positives make it sound like this is more a movie to laugh at than laugh along with.

Dave the Necrobumper

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Re: Australian Cinema?
« Reply #147 on: June 26, 2017, 03:55:53 PM »
I was not laughing at the film, because its silliness is intentional. It is a most dangerous game plot. There are some crazy characters in the film, but also 1 scene where you go WTF, then a reveal has it all nicely make sense.

You may be groaning, but for those wanting a good taste of Ozploitation this is a film to think about.

aewade90

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Re: Australian Cinema?
« Reply #148 on: August 03, 2017, 08:03:10 PM »
I was not laughing at the film, because its silliness is intentional. It is a most dangerous game plot. There are some crazy characters in the film, but also 1 scene where you go WTF, then a reveal has it all nicely make sense.

You may be groaning, but for those wanting a good taste of Ozploitation this is a film to think about.

Turkey Shoot is the nadir of Ozploitation weirdness, for me. It's the product of this decade-long build and pretty shamelessly apes a bunch of earlier ideas of the genre and ramps them to extremes...but it still doesn't make it a good film, to be honest. It's as subtle as a brick to the face and thankfully about half as pleasant, and while there's a lot of fun to be had at the ridiculousness it never really offered anything other than cheap thrills. The camp director is called Thatcher, for christ's sake.

If anyone's interested in a crash course in Australian cinema, I'd recommend checking out David Stratton's new series: https://www.screenaustralia.gov.au/the-screen-guide/t/david-strattons-stories-of-australian-cinema-2017/34223/ - not sure of it's availability outside of Australia online however. It's fairly fleeting around everything but a few milestones, but it does provide some nice insight and fodder for a list of must-sees from the silents to contemporary cinema.

I'd also really recommend anyone interested in Australian film to check out the works of Raymond Longford - he was a bit of a forgotten pioneer within the silent era, and although a bunch of his stuff has been lost forever, "The Sentimental Bloke" and "On Our Selection" are fantastic works. https://aso.gov.au/ is a great streaming resource as well, but again I'm not too sure how it goes outside of Australia.

Dave the Necrobumper

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Re: Australian Cinema?
« Reply #149 on: August 04, 2017, 02:30:40 AM »
I did not know about the aso site. It looks great.

I like Turkey Shoot's lack of subtlety, but I am weird that way.

 

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