It’s world cinema time with another film that received rave reviews on the festival circuit and positive buzz around its theatrical release earlier this year. This is another one of those gems that I knew little about and I recommend it to anyone.
The plot has loner Martin (Willem Defoe) sent on assignment from a pharmaceutical company to Australia to track down the thought extinct Tasmanian tiger. That’s it! However he encounters a few difficulties in his task from the locals and develops a bond with the family he is lodging with.
It’s a thriller with high levels of paranoia and had me guessing what was behind Martin’s mission and its effect on the local environment and population. From the beginning scene in a Paris airport, secrecy is high and he is given his assignment in the manner of a secret agent or hit man. I thought he was sent to hunt a human hiding in Australia but then it was revealed to be the tiger, thus playing on my expectations and conventions with its use of dialogue, visuals and general craftsmanship of this film.
From the earliest shots you can tell that Martin is a focused individual and a man of precision. It’s only when he develops a heart and opens himself to the world around him that things change and the plot thickens. Willem Defoe is excellent in his performance of a man you know nothing about and it’s great to see his character develop as Martin reveals himself. He is one of those actors where subtlety goes a long way and we see his conflict with his task. However this is another film where the protagonist goes into his inner cave as the hunter, and only comes out when ready to complete his task.
But by the end of the film I realised that the plot and twists and turns were all laid out for me to see but I didn’t realise what was coming due to the nature of the film how engrossing it is and how well it’s crafted that it kept me guessing. But seriously, it lays it all out. When you watch it don’t go expecting twists and overt mystery, just watch it for what it is.
However I should say that one of the stars of this film is the forest of Tasmania and the seriously stunning yet haunting landscape shots representing and showing the beauty and alienation of Marin and his prey. I just wish I had a bigger screen to review this film! Seriously, how many of you knew Australia had vast forests? I’ve seen a lot of David Attenborough documentaries but never thought Australia could look like that and the closest I can compare it to is Canada.
The area Martin visits has a huge unemployment rate due to conservation halting the local logging trade. The locals view Martin as a greener’ and it is clear he is not welcome. His cover story is that he’s been sent by the university to study Tasmanian devils, but even when he meets fellow ecologists and university staff they question his true motives and his lies alienate him further.
Which leads me to Sam Neill’s performance as Jack Mindy, a man sent’ by the university to guide Martin through the forest but his true motives are unclear. You will see by the end that like most people, he is only doing his job. However he is great playing a bushman and is barely recognisable from his performance in Jurassic Park (1993).
While Martin is on his mission he has lodgings with Widow Lucy Armstrong (an excellent Frances O’Connor) and her two children Sass and Bike. It transpires that Lucy was married to another American who disappeared in the forest a year ago while studying the Tasmanian devil and has such developed into a self medicated slumber and her kids are partly left to fend for themselves. Bike never talks throughout the film and although its clichéd, it works, adding some needed closure and warmth towards the end of the film. He draws hints that he may have seen the tiger and this adds mystery to the film. However Morgana Davies performance as Sass also stands out and I see a future star in the making.
So with these characters we have a family drama where Martin grounds the near feral kids and brings their mother back from mourning, whilst we are engrossed in the mysterious disappearance of the father.
These themes of family and loss are merely one part of a film that also has broad reflections on environmental and sociological issues. Themes of alienation, such as the lone gunman, the kids taking care of themselves and the mother coming back to the world. It shows economical fallout with the unemployed workers vs. government intervention and tax funds to preserve the forest and a conspiracy of corporations vs. nature and the community wishing to preserve and exploit it.
It has an overarching theme of one’s redemption and the consequences of their actions. By finding the tiger, can Martin redeem his past and settle for family life? As a race can we redeem ourselves for the destruction of nature and the extinction of the Tasmanian tiger? Can Lucy redeem herself for abandoning her kids? Can Jack Mindy redeem himself from his past?
All these elements are all in context and never feel drawn out or briefly used for the pure sake of narrative.
I’ve already stated that the cinematography is stunning and it features good use of pre emptive shots (candles, bear traps). It has excellent use of soundtrack both being haunting and adding beauty to the film.
However this film stuck with me for a few days after watching it as I worked out how it unfolded. It’s well made, has heart, depth and moral choices. It’s about what people blindly do for others for greed instead of following one’s own path.
The features include as Interview with William Dafoe, which is bookended by a trailer aimed at presenting the film as an action movie. It has a big focus on the guns and a bit about the plot, but is a bit spoilery for me. Overall this interview is good and offers an interesting insight into the actor’s head and how he works, but it’s a bit drawn out and I lost concentration quite a bit. Willem likes playing conflicted characters and ultimately goes to movies to be inspired.
He states the film was a passion project for director Daniel Nettheim who has been developing it for 10 years. Willem responded to the script although confessing it was very overwritten and over explained, that it needed more air and mystery in it.
The Making Of..’ featurette is an excellent and informative addition that documents the film from adapting the international bestselling book to the finished product. Unlike the interview, this is informative and is broken down in sections with the director, the characters, Tasmania and the house. Daniel Nettheim explicitly points out the film’s notion of redemption which attracted him to the project while Sam Neill says that the film is really about the fall of Jack Mindy. Well, not entirely, but he has a point. Deleted scenes are intercut with interviews and you get a feel of the love and passion that went into making this film.
Overall Verdict: This is a thoroughly well crafted film with excellent performances, stunning scenery and a multi-layered plot which keeps you guessing the true nature of Martin’s mission and its consequences, but all in all it’s about the quest for redemption of the individuals and society as a whole. It is well balanced and will haunt you for all the right reasons!
Special Features:
Interview With Willem Dafoe
‘Making Of…’ Featurette
Trailer
Reviewer: George Elcombe