Beautiful Kate

Ned Kendall (Ben Mendelsohn) has come back to the family home with young wannabe actress Toni (Maeve Dermody) after 20 years of absence. He must come to terms with his dying father Bruce (Bryan Brown), and resolve the death of his twin sister Kate (Sophie Lowe). There he finds his sister Sally (Rachel Griffiths) dutifully taking care of their mean spirited father in their old crumbling farm that is soon to be lost to the bank. Much of this movie goes into flashback mode. It's a much more compelling story in the past due mostly to Sophie Lowe's enigmatic performance. The present story is much more depressed, and it struggles under the weight of buried anger. There is a mystery of the family's past. There are deaths not talked about. The present day needs some more energy.

I always enjoy good controversial "taboo' movies, if they are done right. And my list this week called form you guessed it, Incest! This will be only one of many films I watch this week, but my god, I hope they are all this good!!

First, I am not going to spoil anything for anyone. With that out of the way, I did not know what to expect from this Australian film. But my oh my. This movie had it all. It was titillating, wrong, and yet so right at the same time. Had great characters and cinematography. The editing was spot on. Probably going to be my go to showcase how to do flash backs. Seriously well done!! It hit all the emotional cues as well. And left you depressed and hopeful at the same time.

By the end I felt drained of emotion, the final minutes leading up to the credits are hard hitting.

If your not to turned off by the 'incest' markings of this movie, I highly Recommend watching it. You will truly not be disappointed.

I saw this film over a week ago, and it still stays with me, almost haunts me. Tex Perkins' soundtrack was perfect, and like the images, will hang around you for days, perhaps weeks.

The subject matter is not pretty, and may be confronting to many, but in my experience it is not terribly unusual or unexpected, given the remoteness of the family farm. Accolades must go to the cast - Ben Mendelsohn, Bryan Brown, Rachel Griffiths (deliberately dowdy in this)and the amazing Sophie Lowe as Kate. The Flinders Ranges in South Australia also has a major role, and performs well - beautiful, remote, dangerous and overwhelming, a bit like the underlying secret which gets addressed during the course of the film.

This is the story of a family secret, hidden (but not forgotten) for 20 years, and the final revelations are stark and shocking. The cinematography and editing are truly inspiring, and I was thrilled to see such a fine piece of film-making. Top credit however must go to Rachel Ward - Director, writer (adapted from the novel)- as this is her movie, and she deserves every one of the awards that this movie is sure to receive. As a piece of art - which it is - this film will move you, even if it makes your skin crawl, or you find yourself wriggling in your seat. For the experience alone, this film is worth seeing.

I look at movies first from the cinematography point of view, And that was what got me in the start, but as the movie went forward, as I saw acting, as I saw story telling I found out that I'm looking at a masterpiece. Somebody recommended Last Ride, I really like Last Ride but this movie is really in a different league. I didn't know who this movie director is(I do this willingly to don't have any predict) and after I finished it I looked at the director's name: Rachel Ward, yeah Rachel Ward's masterpiece. Bryan Brown's acting is the best, i didn't know Sophie Lowe but she is probably an actor(Isn't actress creepy?) to remember her name for the future. Also time dimensions is something touchable in this movie. I highly recommend it if you consider yourself an open mind person, because you should enjoy the kind of passion thats going to get injected to you.

I have mixed feelings about this one. It gives a real taste of the harshness of outback farm life in Australia, and it is certainly well directed and produced. The acting performances are convincing, though the character of Toni seems a little over the top, or even unnecessary to the story. Speaking of which; the story is the weakness here. What could have been a psychological drama tracing taboo desires and their roots is instead allowed to develop into a father vs son struggle that we've seen too many times before.

Overall: dark, fascinating, challenging, but let down in the end by a plot without the depth to really carry it over the line. Worth watching though.