Burning Man

Initially I was dazzled. I didn't mind that I was being toyed with, because watching this brilliant piece of manufactured cinema-conjuring was exciting. I was always aware that I was watching a clever movie, rather than being immersed in an emotional experience. But once I'd worked out what was going on and who was who I become tired of the repetitive backwards/forwards structure, and the lack of anything to say, apart from the fact that the smarty-pants hero finds grieving a tough call. The central character - played with about three expressions by Matthew Goode - suffers a tragedy and tries to cope by behaving like an adolescent on a bender, which, I assume, is supposed to be endearing, but is mostly tedious and repetitive. He and his beloved wife are well suited, as she is equally pleased with herself. Their son, the only character I really cared about is worth watching; as is Essie Davis, as his aunt. There are a few touching moments, but they are far outweighed by scenes that you've seen before, in better and worse dramas on TV and in other movies, and even already in this film... on and on and on with no progression. The Script Editors should re-train. This would make a terrific short; unfortunately it's a long.

BURNING MAN is possibly the shiniest wildest and most dazzling new Australian film this year. Absolutely modern in tone and emphatically heartless this is the jigsaw-puzzle depiction of one very confident handsome man imploding and emotionally fracturing. I could suggest it is emotional Inception requiring 2 viewings to slot it all together. However you might not want to because, as gorgeous a leading man as he is, and as sexually magnetic as every woman he meets finds him, and as slick as the film making clearly is, he is not a very nice person for 108 of the 109 minutes on screen. BURNING MAN is a heterosexual version of Matthew Goode's own recent film A SINGLE MAN which won an Oscar last year for someone else. Set in Bondi Sydney this chef with a lonely egg beater and a bewildered son gets mangled in a car crash to jiggle himself through his life flashing by long enough for us to know he actually fell in love (hence kid) ... perfect performances, confusing casing and in need of an edit, BURNING MAN is terrific and annoying all at once. Great film making and aggravatingly modern. Imagine Jamie Oliver played by Tom Hardy. Hump on the hotplate, anyone? wanna watch? All that and more.... then there's the wanking scene.....

When we first meet Tom, we see a rude, selfish, out of control guy engaging in some pretty self destructive behaviour. Unsympathetic to the core, it's not until this unconventionally told story reveals more about him that we find out why he is this way. By the end of the film, your feelings about this guy will do a complete 180. You may even shed a tear or two.

The way this film is constructed is either going to deter you, or capture you hook, line and sinker. I'm in the latter group. It rightly won an award for Best Editing at the 2011 Film Critics Circle of Australia. The Australian vocalist from Dead Can Dance, Lisa Gerrard, does most of the soundtrack which also scored awards. From a budget of 9 million we have a beautifully shot, artistic and emotional film, with strong acting by the leads. It takes an unconventional look at what it would be like to lose someone close, and the process of grief, especially for men, who are not known for their outward displays of emotion.

Some of the transitions between scenes may seem a little contrived. I think the intention was to reveal the story in much in the same way that our memory works .. by association.

It loses a point for a few rather silly scenes. Burning Man deserves a much bigger audience, especially outside Australia. Looking forward to Jonathan Teplitsky's next feature.

Tom Keaton (Matthew Goode) is struggling with a mess of sexual encounters with various women after the death of his wife Sarah. He is estranged from his son Oscar. He's a top chef in a chic restaurant.

The acting is good here. The reason for his dysfunction is compelling. However, many movies nowadays think they need the added tension of shredding the time line. They think they need to confuse the viewers so they have the added tension of trying to figure out the storyline. Instead, they should have the confidence in the story to allow it to unfold. Sure flashbacks may be preferable to a strictly linear time line but there's no need to put the film thru a blender.

Burning man tells a story about coping with loss and fighting inner demons. Although the topic might not be appealing to everyone, the authors chose an approach that might alienate a lot of possible viewers. Here i mean the non-linear storytelling and characters potentially seen as egoistic.

There were no surprises in Matthew Goode delivering an exquisite performance. The treat of the movie is Bojana Novakovic. Virtually unknown, or only if you've seen obscure movies such as Skinning (2010), was at every moment on par with Matthew Goode.

I was unsure whether the main character's struggle has been coping with grief or his own descending into madness. Either way, this wasn't a light topic to handle and might add to aversion of some viewers.