Review of Australia (2008) by Mitch M — 11 Dec 2010
The title says it all, although less for the implied reason - that this is *the* epic story of the land - than for the fact the real star of the movie is the scenery. It's not a terrible movie, but it did provoke a lot of snarky comments ("The longest film in history," "Nicole Kidman should sue either her makeup artist or her plastic surgeon," etc.
) Australia felt like it had reached a natural conclusion about 90 minutes in, and when we got another climax about 60 minutes later, I thought we were heading for a three-act movie. Instead Luhrmann decides to tie everything up and send you home in 15 more minutes -- at that point I was expecting another hour on the aftermath of the bombing of Darwin.
(I would've happily watched an even longer director's cut that stopped at these points and said "Time for a bathroom break and a snack.") It *is* beautifully shot, though, and aside from Nicole Kidman's rather plastic appearance, performances are believable.
This review of Australia (2008) was written by Mitch M on 11 Dec 2010.
Australia has generally received positive reviews.
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