The Furnace

Drawing you in from the first few scenes, The Furnace has you thinking on many levels. This wonderful movie educates as much as it entertains. Meticulous research grounds The Furnace in the reality of the time, providing a strength and depth to the characters and storyline which, along with the stunning panoramas of the timeless West Australian outback, makes watching it such a pleasure.

I loved the narrative, culture and heritage we all Australians share. A great work from the Director and the team. Watch and learn about amazing Australian story.

The Furnace is unique to me in that the story was well written and balanced, the acting was great as was the casting and production- however despite my appreciation for the film's heart i found it entirely boring.

i think what bored me was that the movie followed the usual odd couple western tropes, old man and young out- of- place sidekick start out rocky and find common ground. antiquated story telling and nothing too original other the the movie's beautiful setting.

if it wernt so boring it's be a 9.

This is not a typical western movie, so if you are looking for shootings and horse chases you are in the wrong place. The western story part is just used to show the personal journey of the young Afghan cameeler Hanif and an excuse to show a part of Australian history that risks not to be told. Three highlights that make The Furnace a worth watching movie: 1 - Maleck's acting chops: this is his first gig in the international movie world and he did a wonderful job showing his internal suffering and emotions. All the actors are well casted and invested in the story. 2 - Stunning landscape: this movie needs an award for photography 3 - the representation of "fathers and son" relationship and the father-like figure. Blessed to have seen the premiere in the wonderful location of La Biennale in Venice

The ingredients are rich: in the 19th century outback, aboriginals, prospectors, Chinese, cameleers (uniformly referred to as Afghans even though they come from many Middle Eastern cultures), graziers, peddlers, Moslems, Hindus, troopers, and station hands negotiate wary relations. A hardbitten prospector has stolen gold in his possession and needs to find a way to legitimise it. He falls in with a cameleer and they trek across the desert to escape the law and other criminals in pursuit.

This is an outback thriller trying to be a deep and meaningful arthouse excursion. The slow pace eventually becomes tedious and a couple of plot glitches irritate. Talented actors work hard and turn in excellent performances, but they are fighting the director.