Accidents Happen

I was fortunate enough to see this film at the world premiere at the TriBeCa Film Festival. And I have to say I loved it. From the opening frames it proved itself to be a film which is fresh, funny, sad, curious and smart.

Geena Davis is a delight to watch as she inhabits this rather self-focused, wise talking character who surprises us constantly with her ability to move through tragedy and yet still find humor and heart.

Newcomer Harrison Gilbertson, at just 14 years old, shows incredible depth of maturity and range as his character Billy Conway deals with the ups and downs of life.

It's essentially a story of life, albeit a life peppered with tragic accidents. But it manages to avoid being bleak, which is quite a feat given some of the subject matter. It's always human and the writing by Brian Carbee is sharp, funny and poignant.

A great film whose visually stunning scenes will continue to replay in my mind, thanks to the brilliance of first time director Andrew Lancaster and cinematographer Ben Nott.

Don't miss it.

'Monumental' was the word that flashed through my mind during the emotional climax. The film itself or the emotional place it had taken me to, I don't know, but that was the word. Mostly I laughed my way through the film but when I stopped laughing I cried great buckets. I also had to keep relaxing the tension in my face and body as I found it a very stressful journey. Right from the beginning we learn that there will be no easy outs, anything and everything can happen. Like all good films this one let me leave my inner critic at the door and completely surrender to the unfolding twisting tale of searing black comedy and bitter soulful tragedy.

Geena Davis has always been brilliant but has she ever had such a brilliantly written role? Has any female actor? What starts as a dragon that breathes caustic wit unravels to reveal a woman that despite all odds continues to be the foundation, mortar and soulful centre for everyone. I found her character so utterly real and so refreshing for a female lead. She had balls, vulnerability, sex appeal, intelligence and of course great wit.

It must be hard for any nationality to see themselves played by others. One character is one thing but a whole neighbourhood and era could seem presumptuous. I couldn't comment on US reaction, accents or historical correctness, however, I did find it interesting to apply Australian storytelling to a universal tale and then set it in North America. What you get is an almost unbearably tragic but ultimately stoic tale told through an unrelenting, disposable wit and a brevity of emotion which never once falls into sentimentality or over indulgence.

It is sumptuous to watch in its cinematography and art direction and the young cast is deftly directed to deal with some of life's cruelest blows. What matters most is the story and there is so much meat to chew on in terms of character, plot and themes. It moves so swiftly from one cataclysmic event to the next proving not only that in life the only constant is change but also that it is bloody hard to keep up with that change; that life is uncontrollable and we are at its mercy to make sense of its absurdity. This film has a great future for a hip audience. From a viewer's entertainment perspective this film is monumental.

Sydney director Andrew Lancaster did well to lure Geena Davis to our shores to star in Accidents Happen. I suspect he didn't have much hassle with a screenplay as biting and sharp as Brian Carbee's to use as bait. During a Q&A after the Australian premiere Davis herself admitted that she has always been drawn to interesting characters that challenge her; Gloria Conway definitely fits that mould. Carbee arms Gloria with acerbically humorous dialogue throughout – her quick wit a shield for the hurt that lies beneath – in addition to providing an idiosyncratic story about how different people cope with tragedy.

It's hard to imagine someone else filling the lead role, Davis finds such a perfect blend of steeliness and vulnerability that she embodies Gloria completely. The non-spoken instances are given extra gravitas by the Oscar winning actress whilst Carbee's words are delivered pitch perfectly. At the other end of the age scale, the young Gilbertson (also seen in the recent Beneath Hill 60) is one to watch out for in the future. He almost runs away with the film as the emotionally-uncertain Billy, displaying a tremendous power in the dramatic scenes. Best of all, he and Davis share an excellent mother / son chemistry in the movie's most important personal connection, their dynamic relationship is a treat to watch.

Kicking off his feature film CV, Lancaster has started strongly. His sturdy direction offers some memorable moments – the opening sequence comes way out of left field, but works all the better for it – although the slightly annoying 'Wonder Years' style voice-over probably could have been subdued. Lancaster demonstrates a terrific knack for slow motion; the aforementioned pre-credits sequence, the fateful car accident and a touching scene near the end all showcase the tremendous effect slow mo can have if used correctly. Hopefully this affecting little film marks the beginning of a long career for Lancaster.

With a shamefully limited theatrical run in Oz, don't let this one slip you by: write it down to buy the DVD later this year.

4 out of 5 (1 - Rubbish, 2 - Ordinary, 3 - Good, 4 - Excellent, 5 - Classic)

This movie did a great job with the period details of 1982 and making Australia look like America and Australians sound like Americans. One mistake though: "Horror Smash" in the newspaper headline is not a phrase you would see in an American newspaper. It's Australian.

The movie starts out alright, but the comic tone at the beginning sadly is not the tone of much of the movie. Then the film tries to be more than it is. Near the end there was this heavy emotional scene where the viewers are supposed to be moved and cry with the characters, but it just didn't work. The "Horror Smash" accident scene around which a lot of the story revolves actually looked pretty minor and how anyone could have possibly been hurt is hard to imagine.

This film has some stellar reviews by IMDb users so far. Look closely and you'll see a lot of those reviewers have never reviewed another film. Gotta make you suspicious. Maybe if you are closely tied to the production, you would really like to believe it is a monumental movie, but it isn't.

I recently ventured to the 8th Annual Tribeca Film Festival to see the anticipated film "Accidents Happen".

I was aware that the wonderful Geena Davis was in the picture which enticed me but was unaware that the cast had a few outstanding younger actors.

I expected a great film from the first scene but did not expect the outstanding, true and genuine performance that a young new shining talent - Harry Cook gave from start to finish. Every scene was honest & true there was an underlining depth that young actors rarely possess. I am never teary in films, but Cook's incredible performance brought me to tears on more than one occasion.

14 yr old Harrison Gilbertson also stood out in this film to me as someone you genuinely cared for. The cast were fabulous.

It was an absolute pleasure to watch this film & Harry Cook stood out in my eyes as truly remarkable talent that the world has been searching for for quite some time. I'm very impressed by everyone's work & look forward to seeing more from them all in the future.

Jane Griffin review-tribecafilm-accidentshappen09(C)