Sample People

Missed it at the cinema, but was always slightly compelled. Found it in the throw-out bin at my local video shop for a measly two bucks! Will I now give it away to anyone who wants it? Probably! No purposeful plot, one dimensional characters, plastic world ripped off from many far better films, no decent dialogue to speak of. You know that empty feeling when you come down off ecstasy? Its that feeling right here. Sad thing is, the Australia I know is heading in this direction, minus the melodrama and simple answers. Interesting only to see the older Aussie actors (who had to ACT back in their day to get by) vs the newer Aussie actors (who have to LOOK GOOD to get by). Like some horribly garish narrative introduction to a film clip that never actually starts... Poor Kylie, started her career as an actress as well...

'Sample People' is somewhat interesting, though never really delivers with its plot.

It manages the rather large cast pretty well, with Simon Lyndon and Joel Edgerton being the standout performers. However, as noted, the actual story doesn't hit - I didn't care for any of the characters involved.

The critics have been less than kind to 'Sample People' - so I had expectations that the film will be somewhat of a dud when I saw it. Many of the criticisms of the film are correct; it's a little derivative and quite a messy film - but that's part of it's charm. It's quite brave for an Australian film - it's noisy, colourful and never boring. It contains strong performances from Nathan Page, Ben Mendelsohn, Kylie Minogue and David Field; and a brilliant soundtrack of Australian artists covering classic Australian songs. The film's production design is excellent - it looks like a Gregg Araki film, and the editing and cinematography are relentlessly brash. It's imperative that people go and support films such as this - a low budget Aussie indie pic, because lack of support from critics and lack of distribution and publicity will mean that it remains unseen by the young adult demographic it is intended for. 'Sample People' (brilliant title) is as good as any film I have seen this year.

What a nasty cynical film. Apparently this sad excuse for a dramatic urban look at what 20 year olds do whilst crawling through the gutter of Sydney nightlife is supposed to be somehow connecting with its target market. Made by some Industry nobody and pals who seemingly thought they could cobble together any sleazy behavior with a young cast and pour it into multiplexes, SAMPLE PEOPLE deservedly failed miserably at the Australian box office. It is so offensive in its clichéd depictions of obvious and easy targets it was fully rejected by the very audience it was intended. Shoddy and cruel and with no attempt to offer quality or resonance to the young audience who might have been attracted by the marketing or casting SAMPLE PEOPLE might have been interesting or even informative if not botched by its exploitive view of 'what teens want to see in a movie'. The character played by Ben Mendelsohn is particularly offensive and Kylie Minogue is again wasted by poor material and untalented film makers. It is as if the producers thought teens would watch any ugly trash and just slung-together scenes and characters who were shallow and soul less. Well the were very wrong. A mini budget film made in 1983 called GOING DOWN got this topic right and is an excellent antidote to this poison.

This movie is such a waste of time. The characters are cliched and the acting is pretty much non existant with exception of a few (Simon Lyndon, Kylie Minogue and Nathan Page stand out). It seems like the director has just watched "Go" and "Trainspotting" and tried to create a Frankenstein like movie, with disastrous results. The drug scenes are supposed to be hard hitting but is nothing more than you could see on any other drug related movie. So far you're probably thinking this movie is still watchable, which it is-just. But before you rush out and see it I'll warn you of Ben Mendelson's attrocious performance. He is by far the most annoying character ever to be seen in an Australian movie. Ever.It's moments like this that make you think how and why a movie like this gets financed and also made it to the cinemas. In conclusion I thought this movie was trying too hard to be cool and edgy that it forgot to add plot and character depth. It would seem that the sudden surge of Australian actors setting off for Hollywood(Toni Collette in "The 6th Sense", Russell Crowe in "Gladiator" and "The Insider" as well as Heath Ledger in "The Patriot")seems to be because of the crud that is being made in Australia. Australia needs to create some great roles for up and coming actors before we lose our young stars to Hollywood forever. I give Sample people 5/10 and thats being VERY kind.