June Again

I stumbled across this movie when I flicked on Netflix one night after work and just wanted something on in the background while I caught up on social media. But within moments, the movie had me hooked and I put down the phone and settled in for what turned out to be a great movie! Something a little different from the norm, and probably one of the best Aussie movies I've seen in years, with a top group of iconic Aussie actors, who played very relatable characters. I think I could see a bit of my own family in every one of them. The plot was not glaringly predictable either.

Don't normally like these type of movies as they're either very depressing or very crass. This was beautiful. Acting was superb. Please watch. You won't regret it.

Who doesn't love Noni Hazelhurst?

Apart from her ex-John Jarratt of course.

She's Australia's favourite mum and the star who literally drives the narrative in "June Again" at the wheel of her dead husbands very cool Gold Valiant Convertible.

This is Kiwi JJ Winlove's major motion picture directorial debut plus he wrote the screenplay...so I can't wait to see what else he'll bring to the big screen in the future.

This movie is all about living and loving again.

Noni's June is in a Nursing Home after a series of strokes left her with dementia.

One fine day she wakes up and is lucid...a state of mind that may only last for a few hours so she takes full advantage and does a runner from the Happy Friday activities at the home to seek out her old life and try to pick up the pieces, but not in an "Average White Band" kind of way.

Only problem is it's five years since she was admitted and a lot has changed in both hers and her offsprings lives.

Her daughter, Ginny, is played by another top flight Aussie actress, Claudia Karvan.

While her son, Devon (which sounds more like cut of deli meat) is "The Castle" star Stephen Curry.

His comic timing is more precise than a Japanese movement watch in every line he delivers effortlessly.

Some other familiar faces flesh out the supporting cast including, the wonderful Darren Gilshenan, last seen on TV's "Harrow", but first came to my attention in the TV comedy "Chandon Pictures" with the award winning Rob Carlton.

So many new movies are dealing beautifully with this insidious disease.

The most famous being "The Father".

"June Again" treats dementia with respect, dignity and humour.

Noni breathes a very real performance into this 99 minute movie that will become an Australian Classic...she truly is superb.

It's a road trip that detours through the threads of the many lives it touches and dementia does touch a lot of lives and delivers a few shocker surprises.

This film will make you laugh, cry and sigh, so it's a winner covering the entertainment fundamentals.

I agree with a review written about the title needing a rethink. It is a brilliant Australian production with excellent cast and script. Apparently it was filmed in 3 weeks! Shows the dedication and professionalism of the australian production team, cast etc.

The story itself is well written & has a unexpected moments that make it even more poignant and meaningful. It is a story about family, life, mistakes made & misunderstandings.

Having had a grandmother pass away from Alzheimer's it is so relatable. Insidious disease that is so hard on the family.

Noni Hazlehurst shines as June and her wit is as always worth a chuckle.

Please go see it take a tissue but tell your friends to go tell everyone to go.

2021 has certainly seen its fair share of feature films about dementia. The brilliantly staged 'The Father', the intimately moving 'Supernova'; the yet to be released Australian movie 'Ruby's Choice' and the title reviewed here: 'June Again' starring Aussie acting legend Noni Hazelhurst.

With quite the mix of tonal shifts through its duration, 'June Again' also stretches believability and does cut corners at times, but its heart is absolutely in the right place and it gives Noni her best role in decades. I gather that the Writer/Director JJ. Winlove did research into the subject matter, and a short term respite from the ravages of dementia can occur in certain cases, but as the device used here to explore family and estrangement within relationships, it felt a little at odds with the veering from gravitas to comedic sequences and be tackling dementia.

'June Again' is made most enjoyable by the leading lady and Noni Hazelhurst gives a tour de force in the title role and reaffirms why she is a national treasure. Having won a pair of AFI awards for Leading Actress in the 1980's, this film gives her the opportunity to reach into her acting toolkit and creates a wonderfully vivid and inimitable figure; one that is sure to earn the showbiz veteran another prize.

Claudia Karvan and Stephen Curry give wonderful supporting turns as 'June's' offspring and both have some terrific scenes with the star as well as with one another. Notwithstanding some of my concerns about the construct of the movie, there is much to relate to in the family dynamics. Curry is especially good here.

There are some brilliantly written and directed sequences that effectively convey what must be the indescribable experience of losing one's cognitive functions. Having marveled at Anthony Hopkins in 'The Father', Noni Hazelhurst also gives a master class in facial and vocal expression to depict the tyranny of dementia. For this, the movie excels.

So a mixed bag for me, tonally, but there is no denying the cogency of the performances by the central trio, and the fact that the condition is so pervasive in contemporary life, stories like 'June Again' even with some credulity issues, are essential viewing.