Review of Australia (2008) by Jeremy A — 04 May 2014

In trying to do for Australia what Gone with the Wind did for the American South, Luhrmann includes too many stories and too many genres, from slapstick comedy to war drama, with a dash of Aboriginal mysticism thrown in for good measure.

Jackman and Kidman's romance isn't entirely convincing and the film often relies on schmaltz and melodrama. This would have been fine if Luhrmann had reined himself in and focused on the cattle drive for example, an exciting sequence and opportunity to show the breathtaking outback landsape.

But then we suddenly find ourselves in a World War II drama with another hour to go. A bit of a mish mash that tests one's patience and leaves you strangely unmoved, perhaps because it strains to toy with the viewer's emotions.