Lazy movie night

Having been exhausted from my recent adventures, I wanted to enjoy a relaxing evening in witha good movie. I’ve always been a big film buff and was familiar with Australian exports such as Moulin Rouge! and Cate Blanchett, but I wanted to experience the Australian film culture that is not known internationally. I began my search online and found tons of information about the history of Australian cinema and of recent releases. Many of the websites I visited were from the Australian government. They must take a lot of pride in their film industry to provide visitors with that much information and feature its film culture as a part of its national identity. I learned that Australian cinema has been thriving since the silent era, beginning with one the world’s first full-length film The Story of the Kelly Gang in 1906. Since the 1980’s, Australian cinema has made an imprint all around the world with internationally successful films such as Crocodile Dundee, Australia, and Happy Feet.



In 1955, Australia produced its first color film Jedda which was also the first Australian film to feature Aboriginal actors. The Aborigines, indigenous people of Australia, had inhabited the continent for 70,000 years. When the first European settlers arrived, there were about 750,000 Aborigines living on the Australian continent. As a result of European settlement, violence, and discrimination, there are only 200,000 Aborigines alive today. Though laws have been passed to protect the rights and culture of Aborigines, there still exists prejudice today and most Aborigines live in poor conditions in the slums.



I rented Australia last year because I’m a big fan of High Jackman and a sucker for romances. The film was advertised as an epic romance between Jackman and Nicole Kidman, but most of the film was focused on the tension between the Aborigines and those of European descent in the dawn of World War II. It is a great film that raised awareness worldwide for the plight of the Aborigines, and I wanted to learn more about contemporary Aborigine life. I searched the Australian Film Institute website and saw a recent release Samson and Delilah, a film about the romance and adventure of Aboriginal teens. I read that it won AFI’s award for Best Film and the Camera Award at the Cannes Film Festival, so I drove into town and rented it at the video store because it seemed like a must-see.



The film introduces Samson and Delilah, two Aboriginal teens living in a poor city wrought with violence in central Australia. Samson spends his days getting high off gasoline and getting into trouble while Delilah cares for her grandmother and sells their artwork for a living. After Samson gets into a fight with his brother and Delilah’s grandma dies, the two run away in a stolen jeep into a whirlwind of misfortunes, including violence from white authorities stemming from Aboriginal prejudice. Though there is minimal dialogue throughout the film, viewers get a good glimpse into modern Aborigine customs and the heartfelt relationship of two teens on an aimless adventure to escape from the terrible conditions of their city and to find whatever is left of their lives. This film was definitely worthy of the praise it garnered and truly moving despite its minimal dialogue. It may not have international appeal since it deals with issues uniquely Australia, but it definitely has a universal language of looking for that glimmer of hope amid bleak situations with seemingly no solutions.

Sources:
http://www.ebgymhollabrunn.ac.at/projekte/abori.htm
http://www.afi.org.au/AM/ContentManagerNet/HTMLDisplay.aspx?ContentID=10177&Section=Australian_Films_Domestic_Box_Office_of_All_Time
http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/film/
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10011295-samson_and_delilah/