Baz Luhrman's, "Australia" has received mixed reviews and has done less than anticipated at the box office. In US markets (a main target audience for the film), it came in fifth place this past weekend with just $14,800,723. "Australia" came behind "Four Christmases," "Bolt," "Twilight" and "Quantum of Solace." For such an expensive movie to make, and with all the hype leading up to its release, this was definitely a disappointment. However, the film is still good, and may still be award worthy in several regards, but this may not be that huge influential epic they had hoped it would be.
In the film, there are several references to old-time Hollywood movies such as "Gone With the Wind," and "The Wizard of Oz." While interesting, it can be a little distracting and take one out of the film. Baz seems to enjoy this postmodern style of artwork that mimics other art forms though, as he uses the same style in many of his past films including, "Moulin Rouge," and "Romeo + Juliet."
The movie is long, and at times extremely slow and boring. The acting chemistry is good, not great, and the story is okay. The cinematography and production quality, however, is amazing - the sweeping camera shots of the landscape are phenomenal. The visuals keep me interested for a while, but generally three-hour-long romantic period pieces are not my cup of tea. I do like Baz Luhrman though, and many of his past films.
An interesting article about our pal, David Gulpili, about his nomadic lifestyle removed from modern society, and how he was unaware of the passing of his old friend Jimi Hendrix.
As I mentioned in my first blog post, Baz worked with Apple to create the "Set to Screen" podcast series. Interesting stuff in regards to filmmaking, Australia, and Baz Luhrman himself.
- Matt Colbert
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