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Epic love tale 'Australia' looks beautiful enough but lacks dramatic flair
By Rich Heldenfels
Beacon Journal popular culture writer
Published on Wednesday, Nov 26, 2008
In movies like Moulin Rouge! and the Leonardo DiCaprio version of Romeo and Juliet, director Baz Luhrmann has displayed a modern sensibility, especially where music is concerned. But he has for the most part placed that modernism in a glossy, old-Hollywood package, lush and romantic in its visuals.
That's not necessarily a good thing, as is evident in Luhrmann's new love letter to his native country, Australia.
The film, directed and co-written by Luhrmann, is nothing less than an attempt to give Australia its own Gone With the Wind, still with modern currents, but above all a portrayal of the land as something as vast, beautiful and unforgettable as Scarlett O'Hara's Tara.
But while the film moves nicely and has the feel of an old-fashioned popcorn epic, that popcorn comes with too much butter (and not enough salt). During a big dramatic moment near the film's end, I found myself noticing the shine and beautiful lighting of a scene. Which took me out of the drama going on.
But what bothered me is clearly part of what Luhrmann wanted to do in this film, which in two hours and 40 minutes deals with racism, business schemes, betrayal, a cattle drive, a World War II attack on an Australian city, The Wizard of Oz and romance of the kind that involves extreme closeups and huge, widescreen-feeling kisses. He wants it big — possibly even bigger than what has made it to theaters, since there are times when Australias's plot feels pared down.
The film stars Nicole Kidman as Lady Sarah Ashley, a Londoner who journeys to Darwin, Australia, to confront her possibly cheating husband on their estate, Faraway Downs. But when she arrives, she discovers a different kind of trouble, that Faraway Downs is in jeopardy and that her salvation may lie with the rough-hewn Drover (Hugh Jackman).
Pivotal to the story of Sarah and the Drover is Nullah (Brandon Walters), a half-white, half-Aborigine boy. Nullah is a bridge between the two populations of Australia — the Aborigines and the descendants of Europeans — and someone who feels the push and pull of each group.
Then there are the villains, the ambitious and evil Neil Fletcher (David Wenham) and cattle baron King Carney (Bryan Brown). And the mysterious, mystical King George (David Gulpilil) walks through the tale, sharing his knowledge and underscoring the magic of Australia itself.
No argument, this is a beautiful-looking film, relishing the grand landscapes its characters navigate. No doubt some viewers will also relish the view of a shirtless Jackman, who was recently named People magazine's Sexiest Man Alive. The acting is for the most part up to the material, and it's fun to see old Aussie pros like Brown and Jack Thompson stroll through the film. And it moves quite well for a movie this long. But Australia is still lacking. It is, as I have said, too beautiful at times. The main characters don't get much past movie stereotypes; Jackman, for one, appears to be offering an Aussie-accented Clint Eastwood, right down to the irked squint. More than once, it looks as if Luhrmann cut things to keep the running time under control; a big cattle drive seems abruptly curtailed, and the fate of one character is settled in too-brief fashion.
I didn't dislike Australia. It's competent escapism in a lot of ways. But its enormity of scale indicates a movie of great ambition, and that ambition is never quite realized.
Rich Heldenfels writes about popular culture for the Beacon Journal and in the HeldenFiles Online blog at http://heldenfels.ohio.com. He can be reached at 330-996-3582 and rheldenfels@thebeaconjournal.com.
In movies like Moulin Rouge! and the Leonardo DiCaprio version of Romeo and Juliet, director Baz Luhrmann has displayed a modern sensibility, especially where music is concerned. But he has for the most part placed that modernism in a glossy, old-Hollywood package, lush and romantic in its visuals.
Get the full article here.
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