Noise

Oh man, what a great film. I enjoyed this so much. You'd be much better not knowing too much about it - but since you're here, you already know a fair bit (and I promise not to tell you any more). This is a 'grower,' one of those quiet, strong movies that not everyone will 'get' or appreciate. To me, it worked in the same way as Trampoline, Sideways, Little Miss Sunshine (and indeed Sunshine) and You, Me and Everyone We Know (I think that was its name) work... quirk, waywardness, risk. For it to succeed in working for some of us, almost by definition it's bound to alienate lots of others, too. I'm not surprised that some will say "Huh? Is that it?" But the ways it plays with the notion of noise and not-hearing and hearing something but not the right thing are just tremendous. So three cheers for writer and director Matt Saville. Ditto too for the acting - not a wrong note or bad performance among 'em.

I'm still thinking about this movie a couple of days on... Do yourself a favour, try not to learn any more about this, try not to let my raving set too high an expectation, and get along and see it for yourself. I hope you're one of those who DO get it.

This is a small film, it could very well have been quality television in the vein of "The Surgeon" or "Blue Murder" as opposed to a cinematic piece as I viewed it (Dendy Newtown). The technical aspects - cinematography, score, sound design, production design etc... are all at a high level and what we (Australians), have come to expect from a film of this genre and budget , but no more. The performances are across the board solid, dry and accessible, and it is a pleasant change to see some newish faces as opposed to the usual subjects.. The script/story is nothing particularly outstanding or original and this style of social comment/genre pic subject matter has been covered by many and various other films over the past years.

But! And this is a big but. In the hands of this filmmaker, writer/director Matthew Saville, all these ingredients mold and mesh into something that elevates every element to serve a singular and defining purpose, that purpose being the film in its entirety, its meanings and commentary that lie in the cracks of all these artists' work and their complementary and beautifully orchestrated synergy .

Having seen the film twice in as many days; Noise is a brilliant film and I highly recommend it to anyone who has a love of silent cinematic exploration.

It's been almost a full day since I've seen it and I still don't really know what to think. The movie is Australian so for me it's automatically great, but I'm still struggling to understand some (not to say most) of the movie's elements. The dialogs are as sharp as they get especially between the cop and the killer in the caravan (- What's your name? - It's Mc as in McDonalds and Gahan as in I gahan read the nameplate). The movie also works very well on the psychological level and not just in a Silence of the lambs psycho killer way. I also wish I saw it with subtitles because some of the Aussie slang was just way too much for me.

I was taken by surprise by how good this film was.

Everyone's performance fit perfectly within the world of the film. Naturalistic, but totally involving. Brendan Cowell was beautifully sympathetic in the lead role.

The director (Matthew Saville) should be commended for being able to achieve what he has for his first feature. It's a rare thing to see an Australian film so in control of what it's doing. And so moving by it's finish.

I look forward to seeing it again.

9 out of Ten.

I like independent movies. I like to see the work of many talented people resulting in a work of art. This piece is one of those. The acting, sound, post, cinematography, story, the entire piece was really good, it is totally worth watching. However, this piece of art tried too hard to suck the audience into its psyche by elongating the scenes to the point of exhaustion. I wonder how many "beats" were in the script. I actually got so bored with the pace of the movie that I decided to get out the ironing board to do something productive with my time while the movie slowly unfolded. So ladies and gents, make sure you bring something to keep you entertained during the unnecessarily long scenes. Chop 15 minutes off the top and you got yourselves a real winner. Still a good little indie.