Review of The Rover (2014) by Yannick B — 30 Aug 2014

"amazing,brilliant, intelligent, strong acting".

I will admit that The Rover is not the kind of film that will be admired by mainstream audiences, but those who like to have their films to be deep, gritty, tense and yet meaningful will find this an incredible Australian drama to rank alongside not only Animal Kingdom, but America's The Road and No Country for Old Men.

The story takes place in the Australian outback (around South Australia in its hot and blistering atmosphere) in the near future after a collapse. A bitter, silent and loner Eric (Guy Pearce) sees his car stolen by a gang and tries to get it back at all cost which has value to him. Asking various civilians (who are fighting to survive in this world, Eric finds a wounded and yet simple brother of a gang member named Rey (who was left behind after a disastrous robbery) putting both Eric and Rey in a intense trip.

What I really enjoyed about The Rover is the fact that the director David Michôd (Animal Kingdom) chooses to tell a story that appears to be so realistic that it could happen, I felt that the Economic Crisis would have been a major backdrop to the story's setting. Character development and emotion is truly present in this film and both of the leading actors deliver that to excellence. The use of music too is raw in some scenes but when music is played it's not the average orchestra score, it consists the use of sound and deep tones. Lastly as well what makes the film truly beautiful despite the subject matter is the cinematography, the out-lands of South Australia are a sight to behold and the camera shots give a detailed look of the collapsing characters and their environment.

Summarise, The Rover is indeed a beautiful but dark Drama that will be only be seen by those interested in the concept and I hope that the film will go on to win some awards for the efforts of its cast, amazing direction and quality.