February 2nd

High Ground

Promising Young Woman

Only two films from me this week, but both terrific and thematically powerful - one based on  the vexed history of white/indigenous relations in Australia, and the other inspired by the the ongoing issue (problem?) of male/female relations.   

High Ground
Dir: Stephen Johnson

Length: 105 mins

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WL-G4oCoDF0

© Madman - tragic history
brilliantly told

Travis (Simon Baker) is an ex WW1 sniper, now a policeman in Arnhem Land in 1919. After witnessing a brutal massacre of an indigenous family, he helps save a child Gutjuk, (Jacob Junior Nayinggul) who is then raised by white woman, Claire (Caren Pistorius). Twelve years later Travis returns and co-opts Gutjuk into tracking down the young man's uncle, Baywara (Sean Mununggurr), who has been mounting attacks upon white settlers. Playing out at times like a Western, the film has traditional themes of conflict, revenge, and male friendship. But there are also multiple layers of complexity in terms of Australia's fraught history. We see the violent conflict between indigenous people and the invaders, and the director never shies away from confronting the audience. Add top Aussie actors like Jack Thomson, Callan Mulvey and Ryan Corr, and you have a powerful cast, but even more impressive are the indigenous actors, speaking in their language, and commanding so many of the powerful scenes with their fierce pride.  Shot in Kakadu and other parts of NT, the film's cinematography captures Australia's raw and stunning outback scenery. This is top-shelf film-making, with gripping and disturbing story-telling and timely themes that all white Aussies should be grappling with.

4 - highly recommended

Promising Young Woman
Dir: Emerald Fennell

Length: 113 mins

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=we5yV7Gc9rY

© Roadshow - this nurse hasn't come to help you

We first meet Cassie (Carey Mulligan) apparently dead drunk in a bar. We soon learn her modus operandus: to get guys to pick her up, then turn the tables on them, making them confront the ugly side of themselves. However, her motives run deeper, relating to the rape and death of her close friend Nina back when they were in college. When Cassie gets involved with seemingly decent doctor Ryan (Bo Burnham), we think her life may have turned a corner, but soon even more disturbing revelations from the past set her on a deadly course. This is an intriguing film, and, depending upon how you want to see it, it's either somewhat exploitative, or a biting adjunct to the #metoo movement. I like the way the director initially juggles comedy with tension, but then takes the movie to a far darker place. This is a showcase for the brilliance of Mulligan, who rips up the screen with the entire gamut of emotions, from sexiness to sadness to sadism. (Oscar material, methinks.) The film should be a great conversation starter, but not necessarily a good date movie!

3.5 - well recommended