Swerve

I saw Swerve at the Melbourne International Film Festival last year. What a ride! The films' director Craig Lahiff (previous film fame Heavens' Burning (Russell Crowe) and Black and White (Robert Carlyle)) prefaced the screening by saying "have fun" – I sure did! Too often Aussie audiences seem to take Aussie films too seriously, this was just good old' entertainment and the audience really got into it! Swerve is an action packed and sexy neo-noir thriller with twists, turns and all sorts of goodies in-between. It's a confident film and knows how to have some fun. The twisting plot always keeps you on your toes and the hot Aussie stars David Lyons, Emma Booth and Jason Clarke are all well cast for their roles. It was great to see an Australian film with some proper action in it. Roy Billing and Chris Haywood make some colorful cameos. Travis McMahon plays a ripper of a bad guy and it was good to see Vince Colosimo in some rough-house fight sequences. Hopefully Swerve comes out in cinemas soon – everywhere it plays it gets a great response. Australia should make more movies like this!

Another Neo-Noir, this One from Austrailia, in the Tradition of John Dahl's Red Rock West (1993) and Oliver Stone's U-Turn (1997). Throw in a Little Coen Brothers and a Dash of Everything Else Ever in this Type of Thing and You have a Watered Down Version of Some Very Good and Entertaining Films in the Neo-Noir Genre.

Unfortunately this is Nothing New and so Irritatingly Nothing New and that Keeps it from Becoming Remarkable. It isn't Bad its just a Bit Wearisome and Not that Well Crafted. There are Some Glaring Edits and Transitions that are Head Scratchers and Confusing. The Gist is that They just don't Make Any Logical Sense.

The Appearance of a Formerly Beat Up Car, looking Raring and Ready to Go and the Jarring Scene where Our "Victim" of the Femme Fatale is Shown One Minute in a Watery Well and the Next is in Some Subterranean Situation of Tunnels and a Surprise.

It is Worth a Watch for Some Striking Cinematography and a Quirky Score and the Thing Moves Along at a Pounding Pace. There is Fun to be had here if the Thinking Cap is Removed and the Popcorn is Buttery, but there isn't Much Style and the Inclusion of the Marching Bands as Something Edgy is More Corny than Cool.

Apparently, Australian director and screenwriter Craig Lahiff wanted to create a "cool" thriller in the British style, but the result leaves to be desired. Even with duration less than 1 hour 20 minutes, there are long shots with riding cars and without text, the cast is not catchy, logic of twists and turns is difficult to follow, fighting/chasing scenes are arid, some supporting characters (e.g. Vince Colosimo's) are ungrounded, providing no additional value. Thus, the events do not run smoothly, and the outcome is just-another-felony-film probably suitable for killing time with popcorn rather than memorable film experience. Thanks to shortness, however, Swerve does not become boring, leading to a versatile, yet ambivalent ending.

But as for films coming from the Commonwealth of Nations, however, Australian ones are still much better than Canadian or Indian ones...

I have watched this movie twice, once at the "Premiere in Melbourne", and another time on a flight to Europe.

I enjoyed it very much, the reason why I watched twice.

The film is beautiful for its pictures filmed in South Australia (Flinders Ranges), and it is exciting due to its fast pace.

The story, which was detailed by other reviewers earlier, is exciting and keeps the viewer entertained at all times.

It is about money, love and revenge.

I would have no hesitation to see it a third time...

Anya Melbourne, Australia

Mediocre Australian thriller heavy on characters and plot, but not quite as much on motivation or logic. It all starts off promisingly enough, with some intriguing scenes involving cars, drugs, death and a beautiful woman, but despite knowing well which ingredients he wanted, writer/director Craig Lahiff doesn't quite know how to prepare his dish. Mostly, his idea is to copy similar successful films, such as Tarantino's work or Oliver Stone's U-Turn. And to the extent that Swerve actually works, it's because of all the things we are not aware of in the film's first half, such as the characters' emptiness or the plot's stupidity. The talented Jason Clarke is the film's most positive asset, along with that story in the epilogue.