Around the Block

Awesome movie I reckon. It has a wonderful story and great acting and it's way better than that show the block because it doesn't have that stupid foreman Keith and that massive dick Scott Scotty cam.

Just watch it! I have been TV less for 3 weeks and watching a lot of online films.I just dont understand the low scores, its like people are tearing these films apart and from what is a great movie they are finding things to dislike that dont even exist, maybe it is the reviewees own narrow mindedness or the urge to 'have their (damning) voice' heard. It's a beautiful film; the acting was super and the story about 'hope' in deciding your own path when life as it does makes it difficult. Don't read the miserable reviews from the film police, just watch it.

Make no mistake - anyone who gives less than 6 to this film is prejudiced, whether they know it or not, or they are white Australians who do not want to accept that there other "Australias" within Australia.

If you watch this film with nothing other than curiosity as to where it will take you, you cannot help but be blown away by the simple power of this film.

Kudos to the screenplay, kudos to the director, kudos to the obvious off-the-cuff but first class acting, particularly in the prison scenes and the first rehearsal, and kudos for putting it all together as if you are watching Life rather than a film.

It is a film with so many stories : Liam's of course, but, also, his mother's story, his teacher's story (Christina Ricci), his brother's story, his school's story, the gubba teacher's story, his brother's story, and last but not least, his father's story. All of these stories grab you by the throat but you have to not be prejudiced to "see" all those stories.

A brilliant film.

Around The Block leans on a wide array of emotions and generates a lot of power from the relationships that the boy Liam has in his life, including the ones with his father, mother and brother. Because of the strength in those relationships, Around The Block runs so much deeper than the teacher-student relationship that the majority of the film is centered around. Hunter Page-Lochard's performance as Liam is quite simply a standout. I enjoy emotionally-charged movies and that's where this one will resonate with me. It is also a highly-stylized and vibrant film which makes it an enjoyable experience aesthetically. Despite the familiar setup, there are very interesting fault lines running under the surface of Around The Block.

Christina Ricci is a very difficult Hollywood actress to categorize. While she has been involved in quite a few projects that are very commercially oriented (such as the god-awful "Sleepy Hollow"), she also has chosen many odd projects with far less mass appeal (such as "Pecker" and "Pumpkin") and has deliberately avoided the typical starlet persona. So, I wasn't all too surprised to see her, of all things, in a micro- budgeted independent film from Australia...yes, Australia.

In many ways, Around the Block is a lot like the old Sidney Poitier film "To Sir, With Love" combined with "Hamlet". I know this sounds strange--but the similarities become obvious as you watch the film. Like "To Sir, With Love", the main character in the film is a well meaning and super- idealistic foreign teacher who has come to work with disadvantaged city kids. Some might find this sort of idea a bit paternalistic--like it takes some American-type to come save the poor children of the world. And, while this might be one interpretation of the film, there is far more to it than this. This is because the teacher herself is a bit lost--and the movie is bound to turn a few heads with Ricci and the subplot involving her struggle with bisexuality. Again, I see this as Ricci walking to her own drummer in playing this character--and her rather steamy sex scene with a woman she meets in a bar will probably offend a few folks and inspire others. I definitely do NOT remember this sort of plot element in To Sir, With Love!

As far as the "Hamlet" element goes, you get it in double doses. First, this teacher wants to put on a production of this Shakespeare play using the inner city students from her school--and there is a widespread belief that these kids could never appreciate the play or rise to the occasion to successfully put on the play for the community. Second, the kid playing Hamlet, Liam (ably played by Hunter Page-Lochard) is in a position to recreate the play in his real life. This is because his father is in prison--and the jerk is pressuring his sons to avenge him by killing the man responsible for his incarceration. I liked this angle, as it made me realize for the first time that in the classic play, Hamlet's dead father actually could be seen as THE villain in the play, as he destroys his son in order to achieve revenge. On top of these themes, you add a lot of hip-hop culture and discussions of lost Aboriginal youth and you have this film.

So is this melange about two characters searching for a sense of identity any good? Well, I liked it. It managed to take familiar topics and make them quite unique and original. It also gives you insight into bigotry and dissatisfaction that folks outside Australia might not even realize exist. It's answer to all this might seem to be a bit simplistic, but at least it does address these problems and challenges the viewer. In other words, the film might offend you but at least it gets you to think and won't bore you.