Movies of the Week: "Backtrack" and "The Dressmaker"
It has been a long time that I say that
Hollywood, in general, is a production line of pasteurized films without daring
or challenges, sustained by stellar actors and bombastic special effects. So
it's good to know products from other markets, where money is scarce, but there
is plenty of talent and imagination. This is the case of Australian films
"Backtrack" and "The Dressmaker".
In "Backtrack", psychologist Peter
Bower (Adrien Brody) and his wife Carol (Jenni Baird) decide to return to Melbourne,
Australia, where they met, to try to start a new life. They intend leaving
behind the traumatic event that marked their lives forever, the death of his 12
year old daughter in a tragic accident.
Once installed in the city, Bower gets help
from an old friend and mentor, Dr. Duncan (Sam Neill), which sorts some
patients and forwards them to the friend's office. But what appeared to be a
new career start presents strange facts, which leads the psychologist to find
out the point in common among all patients: all are dead, and the date and
circumstances of death are the same.
Bower decides to return to his hometown,
which was the scene of all these deaths, and find out his actual role in the
event. Some startling revelations will unravel the mystery that remains silent
for so many years.
"Backtrack" is an interesting film,
with low budget and small cast, but that is sustained thanks to a well-written
script and good acting of the protagonists. Although sometimes it suggests going
to the horror, the film is a well-crafted thriller that keeps the viewer's
attention until the end.
The other film in focus is "The
Dressmaker", directed by Jocelyn Moorhouse. Myrtle Dunnage (Kate Winslet),
a beautiful and elegant woman returns to her hometown, a small village lost in
some dusty corner of Australia.
Tilly, as she was known, tries to rescue the
mother's life, which is considered crazy and survives thanks to the kindness of
a neighbor, Teddy McSwiney (Liam Hemsworth). Nothing in the city seems to have
changed in the twenty years in which Tilly was absent.
Besides taking care of the mother, Tilly
wants to find out what really happened in his childhood, when she was accused
of having killed a classmate. Most people refuses to talk, even the policeman
Farrat (Hugo Weaving), which seeks to help Tilly while he dazzles himself with
feathers and sequins brought the girl.
Tilly soon proves to be a skilled stylist,
and even the people who hate her for her pass, decide being her customer. What
no one counted on was the arrival of another dressmaker, brought by the mayor
to the dual role of lover and Tilly rival.
Gradually, the truth will be revealed, but
what could be the beginning of a happy life falls apart due to a new tragedy.
But Tilly still will show why she came. After her passage, there will not be stone
upon stone.
Despite being sold as a comedy, "The
Dressmaker" is a drama that shows that even in such a small society the
worst values seem to be the most widely adopted.
The cast is small, but bright, especially
Kate Winslet and Hugo Weaving, this one very far from the Agent Smith from
"The Matrix" and closer to his unforgettable character in
"Priscilla, Queen of the Desert."
An added bonus of the film are the beautiful
landscapes of the Australian outback, depicting the crude aridity of nature and
relationships in a place seemingly forgotten by God.
