Rencontre d'une nuit

Four young people, hiding after dark in the Sydney Opera House, learn that nuclear war has been declared in Europe and Central America, with US bases in Australia targeted. Faced with the prospect that life as they know it may have ended forever, they must come to terms with their feelings for each other. As with many non-action Apocalyptic films, it tends to drag a little: there was an excellent opportunity to really explore the characters, but what we have is little more than light conversation. A strong finish almost makes up for the weak first hour...and who else found the American sailor character annoying? At least there's a (rather extended) Midnight Oil clip to keep us going. Rating: 6/10. See also: ON THE BEACH (1959), ON THE BEACH (2000) (mini), and also read Nevil Shute's novel, ON THE BEACH.

This film has all the hallmarks of an early nineties indie movie. Small cast (four people). Single locale (the Sydney Opera house). Single plot thrust (the end of the world). But look at the date. 1984. So when John Hughes was messing about with teen - movies and the USA thought Tootsie was one of the greatest films of all time, Oz had greater concerns. Almost creating its own genre - the pre-apocalyptic movie - this film deftly shows what would actually happen in case of such an emergency. Nothing much. People would still go on dates. They'd probably hang out. Some sex might go on. Then everyone might die. What's so lovely about this film, is that they are real people. You can't really tell them apart. They don't have stereotypes. In fact only the navy officer really stands out. We like them because they are like us. If I was in that situation, I'd probably go a bit stir crazy. If you happen to see this film around, do go see - if nothing else you get to see what the Sydney Opera House looks like at night when everyone's gone home . . .

I only came across this after hearing of the passing of Saskia Post. It's a nice snapshot of how Sydney used to look in the 1980s, with footage of the Opera House & Sydney Harbour & nearby streets as well as Martin Place train station, and a full performance by Midnight Oil of their famous song Short Memory is nice to see. It may be a bit factually inaccurate with the nuclear fallout, and the acting is a bit basic, but it's an interesting enough story of how a small group of people would react in an unexpected situation, starting off in optimistic denial until the reality of the situation sets in. Watch out around the 5-minute mark for a cameo from former Crowded House drummer Paul Hester as a naval officer.

In the eighties, John Duigan was one of Australia's most innovative and charming film-makers. Although he hasn't done much of note in recent years, "Flirting" (1991) and "Lawn Dogs" (1997) are 90s examples of his brilliance, and his forthcoming film, "Head in the Clouds", sounds promising. "Lawn Dogs", with its magnificent acting, screenplay (sadly not by Duigan) and stunning cinematography, is probably his masterpiece, but for sheer experimentalism and surprising pathos, "One Night Stand" is hard to ignore, especially considering it was made in 1984.

The story is very simple - actually, there isn't much of one. A group of four people sit around in an abandoned Sydney Opera House, worrying about the end of the world. But Duigan uses this merely as a point of departure. With some of the most interesting, and subtle, uses of flashback that I've seen in a while, nice acting, and clever uses of "Short Memory" by Midnight Oil and Fritz Lang's "Metropolis", Duigan has come up with quite a gem. It doesn't have any of the usual trappings of Australian film - excessive "larikanism", lack of subtlety and depth, cinematic blandness or an irritating effort to be noticeably "Australian" (despite the potentially cumbersome use of Sydney landmarks) - and has so many things that many American and world movies lack. "One Night Stand" is a film with the potential to surprise in an age when we so often think we've seen it all. It's dated a little bit - quite a bit, actually - but, well, it was 1984, so you can't exactly expect it to look like it was made yesterday. But in terms of what it achieves - emotionally, politically, cinematically - it is avant-garde in the truest sense. Not unwatchable, not difficult, just truly ahead of the game. And so few films have really caught up in the 20 years since.

I just hope that "Head in the Clouds" can show that Duigan still is, rather than just was, an amazing film-maker. More people need to see "Lawn Dogs". More people need to see the Danny Emberling films. And, judging by the seriously low user-rating, and startling absence of user comments on IMDb, it seems very clear that more people need to see "One Night Stand".

I saw this movie when I was a teenager and could never remember the title. The story line stuck with me though. Recently stumbled across it on Amazon Prime when they licensed a heap of eighties, nineties and naughties content. YaY I now know the name of it. It is a great movie for the time period in which it was produced.