Strangerland

After their free spirited, too mature for her age and nubile daughter Lily (a walking Lolita cliché) takes off with her brother into the desert the already unstable marriage falls prey to resurfacing old resentment. Nobody in the small sleepy outback town knows where she has disappeared off too yet many seem to have had some involvement. As the movie progresses we see the mother (Kidman) fall further in desperation induced mental frailty while dad (Fiennes) holds her responsible for their daughters 'adventurous nature' so to speak. Although it starts off well with what seems to be a wholesome plot, either a mystery or a psychological thriller, it lingers and resumes in exploring the relationship between mainly the parents and the towns people. Some over-dramatization doesn't do the plot any good and by the end it leaves you hanging. It lacks a firm direction and goes on tangents instead, many scenic shots, dramatic outburst and at last an unsatisfactory ending. It is the indecisiveness that irritates. When presenting a strong leading plot line it needs to be followed through, at least partly. Fiennes and Kidmans' performances are impeccable despite the failing script.

This film tells the story of a family that moves to a small town to escape from a dark past. Unfortunately their children goes missing, and in the search, it seems everyone has something to hide.

"Strangerland" depicts a mother who is in much distraught over the disappearance of her children. Nicole Kidman is very convincing as a very distressed mother, I empathise with her and feel so sorry for her pain and loss. The father, on the other hand, has a different approach to the circumstances, creating a stark contrast. The hunt for the missing children is long and less than fruitful, engaging me and making me hope for something good would happen soon. I think it's a heavy film with a heartbreaking and depressing story.

Tensions flair between a couple living in the outback when their son and daughter disappear during the night in this Australian mystery thriller. The film is drooped in atmosphere with eerie aerial shots that emphasise the isolated nature of the outskirts town, some very moody skies and an absolutely haunting music score. There is a constant sense of something sinister afoot, and as the two parents learn increasingly shocking things about their children in their quest to find them, their disappearance serves as a catalyst: a wake-up call for just how out of control their kids are and how they have failed as parents. Everything progresses at a deliberately slow pace and it is understandable why some might not take kindly to the film since it plays out as more of a Michelangelo Antonioni mystery movie than a standard Hollywood thriller. There is, however, a lot going on beneath the surface and the chief drawback of the film, if anything, is how elusive this all remains by the end. There is the slightest hint of childhood sexual abuse, the vaguest suggestion of the kids being afraid of their own parents - but frustratingly, nothing is ever clear. The ambiguity with regards to their daughter's disappearance is, on the other hand, an excellent touch, highlighting that the film is primarily about the parents and their gradual, mutual realisation that they are not entirely satisfied with their lives and each other. Indeed, while the small town setting initially seems to represent freedom and escapism from past mistakes, in the end, the setting only forces them to confront their inner demons face-on.

The Parkers, a dysfunctional family in the Australian desert, discover their two teenage children disappear without a trace.

The father, Matthew Parker (Joseph Fiennes), had once beat up a teacher in another town for having sex with his daughter Lily (Madison Brown). The mother Catherine Parker (Nicole Kidman) protects her children as best she could, but has difficulty doing it as Matthew seems uninterested but wants to be strict especially with Lily (who dresses provocatively to annoy her father), but gives in to Catherine most of the time. The son, Tommy Parker (Nicholas Hamilton), never says much and has a habit of waking up and walking off into the night, but always returned. Until now. Both Matthew and Nicole sleep in separate bedrooms.

This is a strange story and we really never know what is going on with all the characters as the director holds too much to his vest. Everyone in here is a stranger to everyone else. Hence the title Strangerland, I suppose. Anyway it fits. As we get into this, we do see attempts at being friendly and communicative, but still a lot is held back. When a question is asked, it takes forever for a character to respond. (that's really annoying) Yes, Strangerland is a very good title for this movie. (Indeed)

I don't know if Joseph Fiennes is miscast in here or the director has him act the way he does. He never smiles and seems unconcerned about the missing children until much later, and it's like his wife is someone he wishes wasn't there. He gives in to her sexual frustrations and afterwards it's like he just changed his shirt.

Of course the townspeople have their rumors about the family and what happened to the children, but many do turn out to walk the brushes to find them. Some say aliens took them; and some say they aren't missing, they just ran away from their parents; and still others say "the land" took them" whatever that means. Then Tommy is found, but cannot talk.

We do see a canyon many times as this director seems to be enamored with it. When we first saw it, we thought maybe the children are there or not there but clues are left. But no, the director just liked the flyover in the canyon. Also this director seemed to like a rising sun with red skyline in the morning in the upper half of the screen while the lower half was in darkness. We see that often. Or was that a setting sun in the evening? Hard to tell as the next scenes were always inside a building

Best performances were from Nicole Kidman and from Madison Brown as Lily. (ha, I knew you would say that).

This was longer than it should have been. It's like someone took a short story and tried to make an epic out of it.

Think you know what happened to Lily? A very big clue was given earlier. (5/10)

Violence: Yes. Sex: Yes, 2-times. Nudity: Yes, when Catherine walks down the middle of town. Language: No.

Is this a drawn out domestic drama or an under-written mystery? It doesn't matter. Just glad I don't have to see these people any more. They were far too long on the screen. Haven't seen a hospital without doctors or nurses before! Admired actors for giving it their all.