Praise

"Praise" is a slice-of-misery Aussie flick which looks into the waxing and waning of a relationship between a sexually obsessed woman and her taciturn and less experienced boyfriend while both languish in a life of self indulgence, sex, indolence, sex, drugs, sex and more sex. "Praise" is one of those films which slip between the cracks of public consciousness for want of broad market appeal and entertainment value while garnering critical and industry acclaim for its ability to faithfully portray difficult human issues. A good flick for adult cinema devotees who are as interested in execution as in content.

Great, thrilling, scarily intimate. In its first half hour, this astonishing Australian feature gets so close to its characters you feel the director is touching your skin. Gordon (Peter Fenton) is a type well known to people in that age between Bill Clinton and the Backstreet Boys: smart, alert, passive, asexual, easily emotionally manipulated. Cynthia (Sacha Horler) is a big girl with a big appetite for beer and the male organ; she needs sex desperately, helplessly, in the way a love-starved puppy races in circles in need of a touch. The movie records the birth pangs, first steps, clunky adolescence, and quick death of a relationship. Like Wong Kar-wai's HAPPY TOGETHER, most of it takes place in a crappy flophouse apartment. That's it--that's the movie. And every detail in it, from the stigmata-like blood flow of Cynthia's eczemous skin, to the fellatio in a milky bathtub, to the reaction of a horny couple to a violent row, is flawless.

The director, John S. Cullen, is all about getting it right, and so he does--to the point where you can find yourself mouthing aloud the dialogue seconds before it happens. This isn't because the movie is cliched; quite the opposite. It's because the movie gets things about falling in and out of love that no one--nobody, not even those who have made the Big Famous Movies About Sex--has hit. PRAISE seems to have had no luck in the theatres; perhaps it will live on in its IFC afterlife. All praise to Strand Releasing, the best distributors of foreign and independent movies in America. If you want to see a non-studio movie on a subject other than a cute boy and his grandpa, or a wily chef who woos all the ladies, you have Strand to thank for your satisfaction.

I'm just not too sure about this film. I loved the book, but somehow the film is just missing something. I think that you are not treated to as much of Gordon's inner thoughts and motivations, and so he comes off as less of a sympathetic character than in the novel. I concede, though, that it would have been quite difficult to achieve some sort of balance in the portrayal of the main protagonists, especially considering that Cynthia is such a dominant, aggressive (albeit sexually) personality.

Despite my misgivings though, the performances are fantastic, especially Sacha Horler as Cynthia.

Probably a common gripe from anyone living in Brisbane is that although the film is set here, it is so obviously not filmed here. I've heard all the stories about budget constraints and what not, but it still irks me (and many others) that a cult brisbane novel was filmed in sydney, no matter how universal its themes.

I don't know who reads these things, but if anybody with any power or clout or interest could please note that this is a great film. Without a doubt much better than THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT or GO! or any other film you can name from last year's SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL.

I was one of the lucky audience members that was exposed to Curan's unique vision. Beauty was found in the most disgusting places.

It's been a year since I've seen this film. A number of my friends have had to read the book (which is available in the US) instead of watching miss Sacha Horler's performance --which apparently won her an award in Australia. Great job!

Please bring this film to America. I don't care if I need to order my own copy... this is not to be missed and, sadly, this entire country has missed out on it.

Thank you for your kind attention.

Hesitantly I went to this movie after reading an interesting review on a local freebie. As I expected we were about 10 people watching this film at peak time (Friday night) in a major art-films theater. It didn't matter because this is perhaps one of the best films I have seen this year. This a fully realized piece with extraordinary performances, excellent photography, superb set design/atmosphere, music, certainly the work of a great director. The story of two people who get together in a dead end relationship becomes fascinating the longer one watches them walk the road towards its logical conclusion. I personally didn't care about their "motivations" or their "backgrounds" as I have ceased to expect any logic from life. I took each second the way it came, each surprising turn, each new wrinkle in an apparently plotless movie. The ending is absolutely perfect as anyone will interpret it the way he/she wants. For me it brought up the power of memories/dreams/fantasies that don't let go, where pale and boring reality can't compete, even if one is aware that a fantasy is a fantasy. This film is much better than anything that has come out of Sundance and could have had a good shot at Cannes.

A must see if you like Bergman films: I was a thoroughly depressed individual when I walked out, and very happy to be one.