Review of Little Fish (2005) by John D — 13 Dec 2009

Little Fish, Or, Lord of the Syringes: Elrond And Galadriel's Mystical Journey To Junkietown.

This Australian production is one of the best films centered around drug addiction that I have seen because it's told with a fresh approach. Cate Blanchett is brilliant as usual as Tracey Heart, a former addict successfully getting her life back together. Her problem is that she's still surrounded by all the people from those dark days: her brother & mother, her semi-boyfriend (a former footy star outstandingly portrayed by an unrecognizable Hugo Weaving), and her serious ex-boyfriend just came back to town after a 4-year exile.

What makes this film so involving is that we don't know all the details of the past, and we see relationships develop that other characters are unaware of. Furthermore, there is no explicit drug use, we only see the effects, and as Tracey's efforts at securing a bank loan to expand her business falter, we see those effects extend for years far beyond the drugs themselves. Desperate for money, she forms a partnership and embarks on a climactic encounter fraught with tension with a completely un-Hollywood, open-ended conclusion. Strongly recommended for its type.