September
| Year: | 2007 |
| Production Co: | Tropfest Feature program |
| Director: | Peter Carstairs |
| Producer: | John Polson |
| Writer: | Peter Carstairs |
| Cast: | Clarence John Ryan, Xavier Samuel, Sybilla Budd |
The first film out of the gate of the Tropfest Feature program, September can be summed up in one word; languorous. Don't hire it on the same night you watch Transformers because one of them will leave you seriously wanting. The story of two boys - one white and one aboriginal - on a WA wheat farm in the late 60s is peppered with slow, wide shots, long silences and flickers of expression that stand in for reams of dialogue.
Personally I was bored beyond belief. Firstly because I had to endure another coming-of-age-in-the-rural-1960s movie with a 'message', secondly because the film itself was excruciating. Another one for the sage who said Australians make movies for social workers instead of audiences.
The story doesn't judge or take a political standpoint (considering some of the overt influences of political action on the characters). It simply peers at a cluster of relationships over time and watches how changes can cause them to shatter or crumble. There's a little redemption to be had, but nothing approximating a happy ending.
Personally I was bored beyond belief. Firstly because I had to endure another coming-of-age-in-the-rural-1960s movie with a 'message', secondly because the film itself was excruciating. Another one for the sage who said Australians make movies for social workers instead of audiences.
The story doesn't judge or take a political standpoint (considering some of the overt influences of political action on the characters). It simply peers at a cluster of relationships over time and watches how changes can cause them to shatter or crumble. There's a little redemption to be had, but nothing approximating a happy ending.