Blackrock

The creators of this feature chose to slide down a slippery slope where elements were cherry picked from a well known tragedy (they went to some lengths to reinforce the connection), yet a number of key facts were reimagined so the film could see the light of day. So the disclaimer that any resemblance to real life events was merely coincidence is an outright lie.

What we have is a watchable screenplay that would otherwise serve as a passable exploration of morality, teenage angst, peer pressure, mateship and misogyny.

Had the movie delved more into the police incompetence, failure to arrest perpetrators of gang rape and the real extent to which the victim's reputation was falsified and trashed, therein lies a far more powerful narrative.

And on reflection, the extended surfing sequences go to a film that never quite knew what it wanted to be. It was an opportunity lost to produce something that would have been ahead of its time and warranted more serious reflection.

Director Steven Vidler's film of the Nick Enright play is emotionally weightless. Vidler seems so concerned to make it relevant to the teen generation it's about that he has made what reads as an extended music video complete with a loud soundtrack, an abundance of surfing footage, orange tinting and shorthand editing. It's shocking to see the indifference he applies to the character of the girl who is raped and murdered though this superficiality extends to all the characters.

The material originated as Property of the Clan for the stage but Enright reworked it for a larger theater company, doubling the cast and I feel losing the purity of his intention. This re-drafting is exemplified by creating a cancer crisis which really has no impact on the base story.

Enright's comment on male aggression which is meant to explain the violence is echoed in the protagonist Jared (Laurence Breals) delivering a climactic speech about `mates is all you got' though it rings false when he is shown to have an interest in photography and a girlfriend.

The actors have little to work with and Vidler winds them up to a level of hysteria so that the strine accents and performances by Simon Lyndon, Chris Haywood and David Field are simply ludicrous. Breals performance is all about his hair and Linda Cropper as his mother is stranded. Vidler thankfully deprives us of footage of the murder but repeats flashbacks of the rape as Jared's conscience, though his long range witnessing becomes closeup memory.

To be completely honest, the only reason i saw this movie was because in our English class we read the screenplay by Nick Enright. And that was it. I wouldn't have watched this movie otherwise.

Yes, this movie contained an almost-taboo subject that hasn't been seen all that often before. But that is the problem: The whole movie rotated around that one happening, this one occurrence.

And, 10 years later, we have become somewhat desensitized to those occurrences, making them not as shocking as they would have been say, 10 years ago.

If that doesn't collapse an already shaky plot, nothing will.

Put it simply, this movie was made to shock people. It was made to bring to light a subject that usually isn't discussed. But the problem, the hole in this plan, was that it didn't.

Another thing i noticed was that the acting was extremely rushed. The dialogue was rushed. The reactions and emotions were rushed. Some of the characters would scream and cry and shout insults at mere words that would only at most leave us frowning. What the director was trying to convey as hopelessness and devastation only came through as characters in need of intense anger management.

Another is that the characters themselves were not given anything to hold onto. If i hadn't read the original screenplay, half of these characters morals would be foreign to me. I had an advantage not many would have had before this by actually having an idea of what these people were like. But the thing is, that shouldn't happen. People shouldn't have to read the original works just to get a genuine idea of the movie.

There were also tiny sub-plots that i guess were added in for extra depth, but only ended up being completely unnecessary.

And, finally, the dialogue. Now, because this movie was set in Australia, and hey, i'm Australian too, i can spot when the slang is forced - a feat that appears in so many other Australian movies. And my gosh, it's forced in this movie. It is all too bush for a bunch of teenagers.

One of the only things i can commend the director on is keeping me somewhat entranced for the better part of the movie. I was interested in what was going to happen, but after the climax i felt it was a little stretched. the dark underlying themes - domestic violence, rape, suicide and relationship issues, kept that interest, as weird as it is to admit.

Also, the party scenes in particular were spot-on. The director conveyed the frenzy of teenage parties so accurately i found myself comparing them to some of the own i've been to. And the locations were decent too, and convinced me. I was also happy to see a few familiar faces - a cameo-like appearance from Health Ledger, Jade Gatt off of one of my old favourite cartoon TV shows and that guy off all saints whose name i can never remember.

For what it's worth, the movie does make you think. I know the rape scene haunted me for a little while even after the movie finished. It is also a fact that when our teacher shut it off in class we were more silent than we ever had been before.

Mostly if you just approach it with the fact it is only a movie you'll appreciate it in the slightest.

I bought this film on DVD for 1 UK pound and have watched it over and over again a great story handled with care and told from no one in particulars point of view. OK so its not going to win any Oscars for having the biggest budget but i cant recommend this enough a truly under rated piece of Aussie cinema. If your looking for something different rent it or buy it i imagine you can pick it up cheap enough anywhere in the free world.

A lot of great photography and beautiful Australian scenery great direction great script.

also a ton of great music (austrailia and new Zealand have the best undiscovered bands music scenes and movies)

As a lover of Aussie films ( and being one myself ) I found this to be entertaining and not a little disturbing.

On the flip side though, I've got to say I really am not a Lawrence Breuls fan. He's got no screen presence whatsoever and is pretty much the low point throughout the movie.

Good to see David Field, Leeanna Walsman. Rebecca Smart snd Simon Lyndon doing justice to their roles.

Linda Cropper plays a good role as Jared's mum. I'm wondering if Jared's interest in Ricko was totally best buddy or if he had the old pillow biting urge. Whatever. He's just a gutless knob.

On the topic of what would I do if I witnessed a gang rape of a friend, would I do anything to stop it?

You bet I would, and I wouldn't be giving no murderer a send off on a surf board.