LARGER THAN LIFE. EXTRAVAGANT. BRILLIANT COSTUMES. SUPERB VISUAL EFFECTS. LOADS OF SONG AND DANCE. VEREY LONG. HINDI MOVIE. Just some of the adjectives one would associate with a movie that comes from the table of Mark Anthony Luhrmann more popularly known as Baz Luhrmann. And one wonders why it took him so long to make a movie on his country of origin. It would have seemed the most obvious thing to do. But he did get around to it after 3 movies that have very much established a unique identity for Luhrmann. But Australia is a bit pale in comparison to the ones that Luhrmann has given us before. And I am not sure if my eyes were playing some games with me. But some of the sequences in the movie seemed very obviously made with the use of the blue / green screen. One can easily make out the difference in the colours and the tones between the main story and the background. Something that you would not expect from a Luhrmann. But the rest of the adjectives hold good even this time around. I would have been surprised if they hadn’t.
Luhrmann takes us down memory lane to a story that came to the fore only after the turn of the century, in fact towards the later part of the previous decade. On the 13th February 2008, the then Prime Minister of Australia, Mr. Kevin Rudd offered a formal apology to what is referred to down under as “The Stolen Generations”. For about a century from 1869, maybe a bit longer, children of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent were taken away by force from their natural aboriginal parents by the police and handed over to church missions so that they could be bought up in the Australian way. Several of these children were never heard from again. Many movies have also been made which talk about the concept. “Australia” covers the story partly through Nullah (Brandon Walters) a love child of Neil Fletcher (David Wenham) and an aboriginal woman, Daisy (Ursula Yovich) on a cattle farm called Faraway Downs in the Northern Territories. Faraway Downs is owned by Lord Maitland Ashley and is the only cattle farm that doesn’t belong to King Carney (Bryan Brown). Obviously King Carney wants a monopoly and has been trying to squeeze out Faraway Downs from existence. But when Maitland dies in mysterious circumstances – allegedly by an aborigine who goes by the name of King George (David Gulpilil), Lady Sarah Ashley (Nicole Kidman) takes over the reins of the farm. Along with a cattle drover who goes by the obvious name of Drover (Hugh Jackman) she manages to take the first step in keeping the farm alive. Along the way, she builds a close bond with Nullah and wants to adopt him.
Set in the backdrop of the period just before World War II, Australia offers you fantastic visual effects and gargantuan sets ala Baz Luhrmann. But as mentioned earlier, it hasn’t been finished as well. Nicole Kidman is as over excited an actress as she has always been (probably in line with her character) and Hugh Jackman is as ice cold and rugged as he has always been (probably in line with his character again). In between all of this predictable acting, Brandon Walters comes to the fore in his portrayal of Nullah and the relationship he has with Mrs. Boss (Sarah’s name on the farm since she is the Boss’s wife). In short if you like well made larger than life Hindi movies which have acceptable levels of acting on display, then Australia is a fabulous way to spend your weekend afternoon. Preferably watch it on a larger screen TV or at a friend’s place on a home projector. That’s the only way to come as close to the effects that Baz wanted to portray. I give this one 6.5 on 10.
Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1784152089/
Luhrmann takes us down memory lane to a story that came to the fore only after the turn of the century, in fact towards the later part of the previous decade. On the 13th February 2008, the then Prime Minister of Australia, Mr. Kevin Rudd offered a formal apology to what is referred to down under as “The Stolen Generations”. For about a century from 1869, maybe a bit longer, children of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent were taken away by force from their natural aboriginal parents by the police and handed over to church missions so that they could be bought up in the Australian way. Several of these children were never heard from again. Many movies have also been made which talk about the concept. “Australia” covers the story partly through Nullah (Brandon Walters) a love child of Neil Fletcher (David Wenham) and an aboriginal woman, Daisy (Ursula Yovich) on a cattle farm called Faraway Downs in the Northern Territories. Faraway Downs is owned by Lord Maitland Ashley and is the only cattle farm that doesn’t belong to King Carney (Bryan Brown). Obviously King Carney wants a monopoly and has been trying to squeeze out Faraway Downs from existence. But when Maitland dies in mysterious circumstances – allegedly by an aborigine who goes by the name of King George (David Gulpilil), Lady Sarah Ashley (Nicole Kidman) takes over the reins of the farm. Along with a cattle drover who goes by the obvious name of Drover (Hugh Jackman) she manages to take the first step in keeping the farm alive. Along the way, she builds a close bond with Nullah and wants to adopt him.
Set in the backdrop of the period just before World War II, Australia offers you fantastic visual effects and gargantuan sets ala Baz Luhrmann. But as mentioned earlier, it hasn’t been finished as well. Nicole Kidman is as over excited an actress as she has always been (probably in line with her character) and Hugh Jackman is as ice cold and rugged as he has always been (probably in line with his character again). In between all of this predictable acting, Brandon Walters comes to the fore in his portrayal of Nullah and the relationship he has with Mrs. Boss (Sarah’s name on the farm since she is the Boss’s wife). In short if you like well made larger than life Hindi movies which have acceptable levels of acting on display, then Australia is a fabulous way to spend your weekend afternoon. Preferably watch it on a larger screen TV or at a friend’s place on a home projector. That’s the only way to come as close to the effects that Baz wanted to portray. I give this one 6.5 on 10.
Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1784152089/
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