Goldstone

A wonderfully slow paced movie that gives you time to chew on the underlying fat of what is so screwed up with the Aussie outback political culture. Ivan Sen does not leave anything out, touching on the Stolen Generation, the rape and pillage by mining companies on sacred land, the destruction and disintegration of the Indigenous culture, and even the exploitation in the sex slave trade. It is ugly, almost revisiting that icon Australian movie, WAKE IN FRIGHT.

It sometimes takes an outsider to see what is so wrong with a country, as Ted Kotcheff did with Wake In Fright, Louis Malle with Alamo Bay and Wim Wenders with almost everything he made in America. But Australia has its very own soul searching local filmmaker in Ivan Sen, who peels away those layers a bit at a time, with every layer revealing the true ugliness of this country.

The plus side was the technical aspect, with the cinematography being the added bonus, perfectly capturing the mood in the isolated remote locations. Once again that was superbly handled by the director himself, who also had a hand in the music.

If you are searching for a fast paced action thriller, than keep away from this movie. But if you desire to be challenged and mentally stimulated without having topics shoved down your throat, than seek this movie out, and enjoy what it has to offer.

'Goldstone' is the sequel to 'Mystery Road', a decent Australian outback murder-mystery, but I actually liked 'Goldstone' better, as it has more unknowns and undercurrents than it's predecessor. Pedersen is back as Detective Jay Swan, but he's a bit more disheveled this time, having gone through some type of trauma in his life. He arrives in Goldstone, a tiny outback town, looking for a missing girl and isn't really welcomed and has to try to find her with resistance from everyone.

The cast is great - Josh (Russell) is the only police officer for 100's of kilometres and it's great to see him wrestle with what's right vs what he can and can't turn a blind eye to; Maureen (Weaver) is the crazy-eyed, false-smile mayor; Jimmy (Gulpilil) & Tommy (Lewis) are local aboriginal elders, and while Gulpilil's role is small, it's significant; Johnny (Wenham) is the greedy mine manager, supplying jobs (and alcohol); and May (Davidson) is a woman trapped in a tough situation. Josh and Jay clash, as he doesn't need outsiders interfering, and Maureen and Johnny certainly don't want their racquet foiled.

Plenty happens, even though there's lots of great scenery shots, as well as some from overhead (crane or helicopter), that look amazing. It's filmed in western Queensland, but could be anywhere in the Northern Territory, South Australia, Western Australia or New South Wales - extremely desolate and at times, beautiful. It's a slow burn, but everything comes together strongly for the final 20min, with a good ending. Plenty of social commentary - aboriginal interests vs mining interests; city vs country way-of-life; greed vs ethics; but in the end, it's an above average cop thriller that works on a few levels.

The harsh climate of the Australian Outback is best watched on film or TV rather than actually living there, and Goldstone does it full justice. The driftwood and sand color palette corrugated iron shacks in the vast flat ochre landscape is stunning and the film is worth seeing for this if nothing else. I loved the slow almost dreamy style unusual for an action film, but unfortunately, due to the glacial pace of the action there isn't much else. Although Aaron Pedersen does a credible job, he really isn't given much to do, unlike the prequel, Mystery Road, he spends most of his time getting drunk or sobering up, with no explanation as to why he is on the grog. Maybe he needs a woman to brighten up his life.

I am giving this film a 9 as it is the most visually beautiful arid desert photography since Lawrence of Arabia, but it lost a point with the tired old clichéd story line. How many more times are we going to see the big mining company acquiring land by foul means from indigenous people and farming folk who don't know any better, or if they do, are powerless to do anything about it? The mining companies have the politicians in their pockets and are allowed free rein to fence off property and guard it with private security thugs to hide the illegal activities which are going on. Their nefarious plans are usually exposed when someone goes missing, which brings in a nosy outside investigator with problems of his own who manages to survive various attempts to buy him off or kill him off. I am not knocking the story line, 'The Code' with an almost identical plot kept me awake all night as I binged on the episodes, but the familiarity makes the outcome predictable.

My big question is where do they get the electricity to power the air conditioning those trailers must need in the furnace of the outback? Instead of shooting at people, all Jay and Josh had to do to flush out the villains was shoot out the trailer windows and the heat would have brought out the occupants in seconds. Lastly, although we never see a cell tower, I want to know how they always manage to get perfect cell phone reception in the middle of nowhere, when I can't get a perfect signal in a heavily populated area of 25 million. Does Australia have secret long range cell phone technology which they are keeping from the rest of us?

Before watching Goldstone I was going to watch Mystery Road, but unfortunately Netflix has dropped it. Shame!

As this Australian film opens two cars drive through the outback; the policeman in one arrests the driver of the other, an indigenous Australian man, for drunk driving... it soon emerges that the latter man is Detective Jay Swan and he is in the town of Goldstone to look for a missing woman. Nobody admits that somebody could be missing there and the detective clearly isn't welcome... a new mining deal is on the cards to the area and nobody wants him rocking the boat. He continues his investigation though and is soon in real danger, unsure who he can trust.

This film, a follow-up to the film 'Mystery Road', which I've yet to see, is very atmospheric. Calling Goldstone a one horse town would overstate its size and the expanse of desert surrounding it makes it feel very remote... it is clear our protagonist can't call for rapid help if anything goes wrong. As Detective Swan's investigations proceed we gradually learn more about what is going on in Goldstone and the motives. It is soon apparent that certain characters aren't good but others are more ambiguous; most notable local policeman Josh Waters; at times it looks as if he could be one of the problems; at others he looks like a potential ally. Many issues feature; trafficked women, relations between white and indigenous Australians and the power of mining concerns whose security personnel clearly outgun the police. The cast does a fine job; Aaron Pedersen is great as Jay Swan and Alex Russell really impresses as the conflicted Josh Waters. Other notable performances come from Jacki Weaver as The Mayor and David Gulpilil as an elderly Indigenous man who talks to Jay about his past. As well as a good story we get fantastic atmosphere and some amazing shots of the characters in the vastness of the outback. Overall I'd definitely recommend this.

Again and again, Australia proves it has an exceptional talent, for crafting quality cinema.

Goldstone is yet another real Aussie gem of a film. Its a story that has depth and beauty, juxtaposed by self effacing, unapologetic, honesty. A reflection, in many ways, of the stark Australian outback, in which it is set.

There's a good detective drama on offer here too, backed by a really soulful, back story. A story that, in a straightforward but touching way, draws the viewers attention to the sad reality of life, for minorities and those marginalized by society.

Aaron Pedersen has much to be proud of in the lead role as police officer Jay Swan. Like the film itself, his performance is understated, yet, at times, almost inexplicably moving. The other cast members distinguish themselves too, including Alex Russell, who plays Swan's local police counterpart, Josh.

In short Goldstone is remarkably well written, directed and acted. True Aussie cinematic gold. Nine out of ten from me.