Jindabyne Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES
Under the surface of every life lies a mystery
In Australia, the town of Jindabyne is about to face a moment of truth.
Stewart Kane, an Irishman living in the Australian town of Jindabyne, is on a fishing trip in isolated hill country with three other men when they discover the body of a murdered girl in the river. Rather than return to the town immediately, they continue fishing and report their gruesome find days later. Stewart's wife Claire is the last to find out. Deeply disturbed by her husband's action, her faith in her relationship with Stewart is shaken to the core. She wants to understand and tries to make things right. In her determination to help the victim's family Claire sets herself not only against her own family and friends but also those of the dead girl. Her marriage is taken to the brink and her peaceful life with Stewart and their young son hangs in the balance. The story of a murder and a marriage. A powerful and original film about the things that haunt us.
| Laura Linney | Claire Kane |
| Gabriel Byrne | Stewart Kane |
| Chris Haywood | Gregory |
| Deborra-Lee Furness | Jude |
| John Howard | Carl |
| Leah Purcell | Carmel |
| Stelios Yiakmis | Rocco |
| Eva Lazzaro | Caylin-Calandria |
| Sean Rees-Wemyss | Tom |
| Alice Garner | Elissa |
| Simon Stone | Billy |
| Betty Lucas | Vanessa |
| Stephen Barker | Top Cop |
| Max Cullen | |
| Charles 'Bud' Tingwell |
| Ray Lawrence |
7.10 out of 10 (752 votes)
Visitor Reviews
Promising story but ultimately unsatisfying
posted on 22 Aug 2009There are similarities between Ray Lawrence's "Jindabyne" and his last movie "Lantana" – a dead body and its repercussions for already dysfunctional lives. But whereas "Lantana" offered some hope and resolution, "Jindabyne" leaves everything unresolved in a bleak way that will leave most viewers unsatisfied, perhaps even cheated.The storyline - the aftermath of a fisherman's discovery of a corpse floating in a remote river - is based on a short story by Raymond Carver. It became an element in Robert Altman's classic 1993 ensemble "Short Cuts". Lawrence uses this theme for an exploration and exposition of relationships within a small Australian community under stress. The movie poses some moral questions "Would you let the discovery of a dead body ruin your good weekend?" and more poignantly for Australians "Would it make any difference if the dead person was an aboriginal?" The acting, especially by Gabriel Byrne and Laura Linney, is commendable. And there are elements of mysticism reinforced by haunting music, not unlike "Picnic at Hanging Rock".If all this sounds like the basis for a great movie - be prepared for a let down, the pace is very slow and the murder is shown near the beginning, thereby eliminating the element of mystery. And so we are left with these desolate lives and a blank finale.
Australian chamber play out of the chamber
posted on 10 Aug 2009Ray Lawrence made "Lantana" and now he's taking things further in "Jindabyne". This is about the fishing bunch, who finds a murdered aborigine girl in the river. They are shocked, but keep on fishing until the next day, when they finally tell the police.This means the start of real a conflict with their wives and girlfriends. The characters form different symbols for different powers. It's about guilt, knowing what the right thing is without doing it, and bringing other people into your conflict.The greatest symbol here is probably the Australian nature, who causes indirectly the whole story. Well acted and much to think and feel about afterwards.
Excellent, thought provoking and compelling
posted on 04 Aug 2009I saw Jindabyne last weekend and was spellbound. It was absolutely enthralling from the opening sequence for me, and the 2 hours evaporated before my eyes. The performances were breathtaking, especially Gabrielle Byrne who I had recently seen in 'Wah Wah' and also Laura Linney, and I enjoyed our local actors too - Debra Lee Furness (proving she's not simply Mrs Jackman), Chris Haywood and John Howard plus the cameo by Charles 'Bud' Tingwell - all made for excellent watching. Interestingly, as I sat transfixed at the end, and couldn't speak or move for a good few minutes, my husband was having a different experience. He tells me he too liked the film but found it too long and didn't appreciate the things I did. That made me wonder if I related to it so strongly because I am female - it proved for an interesting discussion over dinner later. Go see it and make your own mind up! Cheers Janice
Terrible show
posted on 25 Jul 2009I hate shows that are absolutely boring and filled with clichés. Let me give you a short synopsis of the movie. 1. Aborigine people are good 2. White people are bad- unless they are bisexual or homosexual. 3. The evil people are men. 4. Repeat after me, evil people are white males. 5. The Australian countryside harbors evil. 6. Guns are bad 7. Violence is only committed by white people. 8. Vote Green. 9. Men who go fishing are evil incarnate and are monsters 10. Wimin are oppressed by men!!!! I can't believe I wasted a good evening watching this piece of crap. How the hell did the film producers get the funding to produce this boring piece of sh1t? On the other hand, Kenny, a film about a dude who goes around cleaning toilets was hilarious - despite the fecal subject matter. BTW, I spent some time staying in Jindabyne, its a beautiful place. Peaceful, fresh air, and only a short drive to Perisher Blue for the best skiing in Australia.
do it while the adrenaline is still surging....
posted on 17 Jul 2009Stewart Kane, an Irishman living in the Australian town of Jindabyne, is on a fishing trip in isolated hill country with three other men when they discover the body of a murdered girl in the river. Rather than return to the town immediately, they continue fishing and report their gruesome find days later. Stewart's wife Claire is the last to find out. Deeply disturbed by her husband's action, her faith in her relationship with Stewart is shaken to the core. She wants to understand and tries to make things right. In her determination to help the victim's family Claire sets herself not only against her own family and friends but also those of the dead girl. Her marriage is taken to the brink and her peaceful life with Stewart and their young son hangs in the balanceanother great, somewhat mystical film from the director of 'Lantana' giving Australia its own character and letting the superb cast have decent dialogue to chew on.the film could be compared to a middle age stand by me, but what we get is a very intimate look into the private lives of the 'guilty' parties. an immense movie that should be experienced
Pretentious and disappointing
posted on 15 Jul 2009The following may contain spoilers but I'll do my best to avoid them. I found "Jindabyne" to be a pretentious film. The basic story of four blokes who decide to keep fishing despite the discovery of a young woman's body in their favourite fishing spot promised much.But why did it become a story of race relations in rural Australia? The central male characters in this film are callous bastards but are they racists? This element to the story added nothing.Inappropriate zoom action from the cameraman, incidental music that just didn't work and editing that kept about 30 minutes too much film off the editing booth floor does not make for a good film.Disappointing!
Ordinary film and no idea what the end meant what was the end!
posted on 15 Jul 2009For the acting alone, storyline was most odd.Don't know if it contains spoilers or not as not sure what the whole movie was about.I wonder what was behind the little girl's drowning performance with her friend, the strained life of the grandmother, how did her daughter die. Must have completely missed that storyline.And how did it end. Does Laura Linley remain in the marriage, have another baby, suffer more depression and does anyone ever arrest the killer.Police didn't seem to have a clue - aboriginal people appeared to be portrayed honestly for a change.Does anyone out there know how this film ended!! What happened to the murderer. Did he just continue to do it again as it was implied he had done it before - didn't even pick up what his job was - was he an electrician.
Gone Fishing
posted on 05 Jul 2009Greetings again from the darkness. Don't go to this movie expecting even a moment of joy, happiness or humor. It is filled with grief, sorrow, guilt and sadness. Based on the short story "So Much Water So Close to Home" by Raymond Carver, director Ray Lawrence presents an expose and the various ways of coping and co-existing.Very well acted by the always solid Gabriel Byrne and Laura Linney, the real cast standout is Eva Lazzaro as young Caylin-Calandria, whose experiments with death are the spookiest part of the story. My first reaction to young Ms. Lazzaro was that she would be a perfect sister to Damien in "The Omen", and then I see she was in a Stephen King miniseries last year ... perfect. Another fine performance was provided by Deborrah-Lee Furnessm Caylin's grandmother who is now raising her after guess what??? ... a death in the family.The story centers around a poor decision by a group of guys out for a weekend fishing trip and escalates into the depths of gloom upon their return. First of all, can anyone be surprised that a group of guys out fishing and drinking have their judgment clouded? But most of the film is based on the relationships, or lack thereof, of the families and friends.A note to Laura Linney: I have always been a huge fan of your work and talent. You are an amazing actress. But PLEASE ... step out of the bitter, near-psychotic, emotionally-beaten woman roles. You have that one pegged, but we want to see you do something else. Lighter or Darker, it doesn't matter ... just something else!!
Great film. Highly recommended.
posted on 03 Jul 2009"Jindabyne" is a brilliant adaptation of the Raymond Carver story "So Much Water So Close To Home". The story was adapted before in 1993 as one of the many plot strands of Robert Altman's movie "Short Cuts" (by the way, another great movie).Away from home on a fishing trip, four men find the body of a dead girl in a river. Rather than inform the authorities straight away, the men tie the body up to prevent it floating away and continue with their fishing trip. The film deals with the consequences of that decision."Jindabyne" is a brilliant, brilliant film. Beautifully shot in muted browns, greens and yellows amid the panoramic vistas of the Australian outback, it deals with death and the aftermath of death, grief, depression and feelings long considered buried. It is a proper grown up, adult, melancholic, and sometimes spooky film ,and it is really good.I've long thought that Laura Linney is one of the great unsung treasures of modern mainstream cinema, and make no mistake, this is her showcase from start to end. She gives a wonderful and subtle performance as Gabriel Byrne's damaged wife. Gabriel Byrne is also wonderful. He is such an underrated actor. Real power, anger and distress behind his eyes. He should do more work.Great film. Highly recommended.
Madness on the fringes
posted on 01 Jul 2009Gabriel Bynre and three boorish mates head out for a fishing trip. After finding the dumped body of a young black girl, they choose not to report it to police for fear it disrupting the enjoyment of their weekend. On returning, the community, their partners and grieving relatives of the dead girl are understandably horrified.Sharing certain thematic traits of Ray Lawrence's previous film, Lantana, but moving out into the great, mysterious Australian wilderness, this was a fine, underrated evocation of elemental sublime and masculine indifference.Madness haunts the fringes of this enforced suburbia.Favourite scene – Laura Linney is trailed by the killer in her car. As she slows to let him pass, he pulls up alongside and peers malevolently in the window. He moves on and we sigh with relief... only for his jeep to stop again 10 yards further down the road.
One of the most annoying films ever.
posted on 15 Jun 2009Before I watched this film I read a review here stating that this film could possibly be one of the best films ever!? ha ha Scene by scene the tension grows alright... from the annoying characters in this movie. From the little girl talking gibberish and trying to drown the little boy, to the killer just running about without any notice (and who was the guy at the beach talking to the little boy!?)..things just seem to happen and then go unanswered in this film. As I watched it seemed like the film was going in one direction, then just doesn't go anywhere, but into a new direction...and on and on...The acting is great, but the writing is horrible. Each character, in each scene, says or does something so unbelievable, unrealistic and the reactions of the fellow cast/extras are simply strange. There are no resolutions to the problems developed throughout the film, making it confusing and ultimately a big waste of time.
Slow, engrossing community drama.
posted on 30 May 2009I'm not ordinarily given to slow, moody movies unless they're well done. This one is pretty well done, especially considering its slender plot. The Australians have done this before, with "The Last Wave" (which came out of the cinematic hinterland), "Picnic at Hanging Rock", and "Lantana." That's a lot of portentous silence.Curiously, the tonus of these films is at odds with Australian character. You have to love the Aussies. They kind of surf along the cultural currents without causing much trouble. They call each other "Mate," they love beer, they're big on sports, and they avoid dwelling on the unfathomable. Well, Rupert Murdoch is an exception. He's a serious guy. (I really enjoy these Olympian generalizations.) Four guys go on an overnight fishing trip near Canberra. One of them is Gabriel Byrne, an Irishman who isn't getting along all that smoothly with his American wife, Laura Linney. When the men reach their fishing spot they find a dead body in the river. There's no mystery about who did it. We find that out in the first minutes. But the men -- well, what can you do? The young black woman is beyond help. Is she enough reason to abort the holiday? Nope. They tether the body to a tree and spend the day and night fishing and drinking. The next day they go back, report the finding, and are contumed by their community, not to mention the local black folk. A black woman asks, "What would you have done if it had been a white girl?" And one of the wives, Laura Linney, asks what Byrne would have done had it been a boy instead of a girl? The men and their wives would just as soon forget it and get on with things, except for Laura Linney, who is physically ill, perhaps with some psychosomatic disorder. There are times when she's so angry with her husband, and so ridden with guilt, that she seems unbalanced. In the end, she levers the community into contributing enough money to pay for the girl's funeral, and -- implausibly -- uses her moral puissance to get the men and their wives to attend the services.At the service, Byrne approaches the girl's father and apologizes for the way he treated the body. The father throws dirt on Byrne, spits, and turns away.Well, what are you going to do? The men may not have broken any laws by ignoring the body but they certainly are guilty of inhumane behavior. Having committed a sin, they took their licking and must then keep on ticking, like Marlon Brando in "On The Waterfront." Insensibly, with the passage of time, breaches like this are absorbed by the community and, if they never are entirely forgotten, they become historical and lose much of their emotional charge. The fact that the press and the other members of the town shun them is part of their penance, the price they pay, and it's just. "Gossip" is a bad word, but community sentiment is an important means of social control. It's foolish to believe that it is the police alone who keep order in the community. Community sentiment is like water in that, while too much of it, uncontrolled, can be dangerous, it's also necessary for public order.The photography is marvelous. Canberra and environs aren't picture-postcard pretty -- but they are picturesque. The film ends on a love song, written by the dead girl and sung by her friend at the funeral service. I began to wince because the singer wasn't entirely terrible. But, thank you, Lord, it wasn't a slow, tragic song with mystic, aboriginal overtones -- just an ordinary vernacular ballad. And the singer chokes up just before she finishes it. She loses it just enough. A few seconds either way would have drained the incident of much of its impact.Those four fisherman, of course, were stupid and insensitive. But it's not easy to feel TOO superior to them, at least not for those of us who have made serious mistakes in our lives that have hurt other people needlessly.At one point, Laura Linney has collected enough to cover the funeral expenses, visits the black family of the dead girl, and offers the box of money to the girl's sister. "It's not charity," says Linney. The black woman replies sarcastically, "Oh? You buyin' something then?" She certainly is.
Needed To Peak Its Head Above The Murky Waters
posted on 28 May 2009Stewart Kane (Gabriel Byrne, VANITY FAIR) heads out with his local Jindabyne, Australia fishing buddies for a weekend of rest, recreation, and relaxation. But when Stewart discovers an aboriginal woman's body floating face-down in a river, things appear to have turned out for the worst. The largest casualty of the weekend is the men's commonsense. They don't hike out of the ravine, and instead finish their fishing weekend with some great catches. Then they head out and report the body.The town and the men's lives quickly turn into a mess. The local media swarms them, and accusations of aboriginal prejudices rear up from the local natives. Stewart's wife Claire (Laura Linney, THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE) senses the deeper meanings of what her husband and his friends did, but has to battle with it through her own mental illness.Amidst all this chaos is the life that was this young woman who is now a media spectacle, splayed out on a morgue slab. Her murder and subsequent dumping into the water are symbolic of what lay beneath the town of Jindabyne: a division of men and women, black and white, social and outcast.The only other people who seem to understand some of what is going on are two young kids: Stewart and Claire's son who is being led around by a half-breed Aussie who's mother was killed also just a few years before. The young girl lives with her grandparents and is trying to let go of her mother the best way she can, and the discovery of a new body seems — strangely enough — a method in which to accomplish this (again, the underlying current of Jindabyne is surmised).Everything and everyone in this Jindabyne township feels what lurks beneath its surface, yet none of them are willing to dive into the murky waters and take a look around (the symbolism here is seen when a nearby lake that is used for recreation and swimming is said to contain the old town of Jindabyne under its surface). None, that is, until Claire forces them to.The movie is interesting if a bit too convoluted. There are far too many story lines that needed exploring and it just doesn't get done; too many loose threads. The acting was okay, but the filming was terrible. Wobbly cameras, grainy or dark shots, and just a generalized sloppiness hurt the overall production.I enjoy symbolic films, NORTHFORK being one of my all-time favorites in that vein. But Jindabyne needed to peak its head above the turbid water so that it could see its own problems, which simply didn't happen.
Disappointing
posted on 24 May 2009It was reassuring to see, here, a couple of negative reviews of Jindabyne: I was starting to think I was the only person in the world who found this film disappointing. Why disappointing? First and foremost, I had expected better from the makers of Lantana, which, while slightly overrated, was a fine film. I had expected that Ray Lawrence's next film would be better still, whereas in fact it is not in the same class. I realise that film reviews are largely subjective, and saying that it just didn't "work" for me is not saying a great deal. The best I can do is to explain why it didn't "work". I found the depiction of the film's central incident – the men's reaction to the finding of the body, and their subsequent actions (or inactions) – frankly unbelievable. To react with (it seemed to me) almost exaggerated horror, and then for the next couple of days to blithely ignore the fact that there was a dead body tethered to a log a short distance away, while they angled pleasantly in the same river, seemed something that people simply wouldn't do. I mean, if their initial reaction had been a lot more low-key, or if there had been some other aspect of their reaction which had made their subsequent heartless indifference to their obvious moral and legal duty more believable, then the whole scenario would have been more credible. For me, the film suffered a blow at that point from which it never recovered. The other main aspect of the film which I felt didn't work was the rather muddled attempt to establish a kind of spiritual undercurrent (if you'll excuse the pun) which ran through the film. It was, like, the drowned town, with its old folks (now, presumably, dead) sitting in their rocking chairs; likewise the old people interviewed in the video: all those dead people, down there, under the water; and the spirits of those dead people rising from their watery graves to come and threaten to drag people swimming in the lake down to the depths (how many times was that motif used!); and those same spirits humming through the wires to freak Billy out as he takes a leak down in the bush, and infecting the mind of the serial killer; and the unearthly, orphaned child with the weird name practising the black arts she learned (inherited?) from her dead (drowned?) mother; and the aboriginal smoke ceremony; and the invocation of St. Brigid; and and and… Mumbo-jumbo was the term that sprang to mind. Further criticism? I thought the serial killer was a quite gratuitous imposition on the film. In Lantana, the death which drove the action of the film was accidental. Why wasn't a similar device used here? Why a serial killer? Why that final scene?? The theme of the serial killer as a kind of malevolent force in nature was dealt with much better (and with a nicely gruesome humour) in Wolf Creek (another Australian film). What else? I found the characters on the whole a highly unsympathetic bunch, which for me made it difficult to get emotionally involved with their lives and issues. A better actor than Laura Linney might have carried off more successfully the attempt to portray the guilt associated with her realisation of her family's part in the tragedy, and also with her decision to kill her own (unborn) child, and her resulting clumsy attempts to "make things right". I think a good film could have been made using this subject matter, but only by going about it very differently.
Moving and thought provoking Aussie drama
posted on 12 May 2009I just don't think some people understand the point of this film. I keep reading reviews on this site, giving average scores, with the review saying things such as 'What was the point of that scene?', or 'What was the significance of the character names?'. You're missing the point. Jindabyne is a film about life, about circumstance, about the choices we make and about relationships. If you start pulling apart every scene of a movie, you end up missing the bigger picture. This film tackles real Australian issues, of 'Indigenous Australia' and 'White Australia's' reaction to the Aboriginal people, of the sometimes unemotional, even (seemingly) uncaring, reactions of men. It isn't really important what a character is called, or if a scene doesn't move everything along. Ray Lawrence's films are more a musing on life and the choices we make, if you're looking for an action-packed blockbuster look elsewhere.
terrible, contrived plot and atrocious writing
posted on 08 May 2009I am rarely compelled to write a review on here but this film was so so mind numbingly slow, the characters so unappealing and unsympathetic and the plot so tortured that I feel I have to.The principal resolves around the men leaving the body in the lake to fish, and yet the interaction between these men about the body is not scripted at all. On top of that, some of the most two dimensional characters (for example the young guy who has nothing decent to say at all except talk on the phone to his girlfriend), the large guy who calls another character "the lesbian" for no reason whatsoever and Laura Linnley who is annoyingly psychotic at the end for no reason.Throw in some hugely contrived plot features that serve no function at all (for example the strange relationship between the two kids, the serial killer who we could have done without, the back story about the mother running off) and this becomes unbearable. There is even a slight (perhaps) suggestion of necrophilia when Byrnes character strokes the hair of the corpse int he middle of the night and then as soon as he returns to his wife tries to touch up his wife rather than tell her what happened.Very poor indeed, avoid like the plague
Jindabyne saved by Byrne and Furness
posted on 14 Apr 2009Yes the scenery is great. Yes the Aussie small town story is portrayed reasonably well. But NO, this is not our finest Australian Film ... not by a long-shot! If anything, aspects of the plot are revealed far too early, and eliminate what could otherwise have been a more "gripping thriller-type plot", which could have endured throughout the film, and made the entire piece work as both a suspense thriller and an emotional study of some consequence. But instead, Jindabyne fails to achieve either of these outcomes. Apart from the excellent performances turned in by Gabriel Byrne and Deborra-Lee Furness, the cast lacks any conviction or believability factor. For me personally, the most disappointing performances come from two actors I admire, and have until now seen as exceptional practitioners of their craft - Laura Linney, and John Howard. Neither fitted their roles, and neither appeared comfortable in this film. Furness however plays it "raw", and both she and Byrne consume the screen totally, in every scene in which they appear. Despite in part being somewhat disjointed, the plot reveals many complicated relationships, and explores these quite well. It is in this facet of the film, that its strength lies. However, the trigger for all the emotional tension and fallout this produces, is the very part of the plot which could have been obscured and capitalised on further, allowing even greater use of "real" human drama than has been possible. It is a film well worth seeing, but for me it certainly fell well short of expectations. I'll wait for "The Book of Revelation" to restore my faith in the Aussie-made product (hopefully!).
This film gave me plenty to think about.
posted on 08 Jan 2009After reading many positive reviews i was very much looking forward to 'Jindabyne' & i wasn't disappointed.Living in a small town myself the undercurrent of intrigue & reaction of the locals rang true with my own experiences of a small community.Obviously there were 'issues' for several of the characters that the incident brought to light & the strained relationships between husband & wife,mother in law & daughter in law,parent & child were well portrayed & acted out.The final scene at the memorial service for Susan was very moving but left many questions unanswered & the viewer is left to ponder how sincere Stewart's apology was,did Claire decide to keep the baby (if indeed she was pregnant) & why wasn't Susan's murder investigated? On the whole i felt 'Jindabyne' was an absorbing film with much to commend it both story-wise & in the quality of the acting.
Excellent - and let me attempt to explain what was really going on here!
posted on 02 Jan 2009This fantastic film falls short of the heights Lantana reached.... but not by much.Instead of doing a long review of praise and flaws, I wanted to attempt to provide my views on some of the metaphors, symbolisms and underlying themes.1) The city at the bottom of the damn: This one seems to be the "something lies beneath the surface" type metaphor. In short, under the surface are the "ghosts" of the past. Since the film centered around the complexities of humans that lies beneath the surface and take origins from their pasts, this was a fitting metaphor.2) Zombies: "zombies" are mentioned by the children throughout the film. What are zombies? Well - they are the undead. In following on from the previous, it would seem that the ghosts of our past remain "undead" like zombies - pressing upon us unless we confront them.3) Billy (Simon Stone): Represents a city-minded Australian: no real clue about the sorts of issues that arise in communities like Jindabyne and turns a blind eye / walks away when things get heated - especially with respect to Aboriginal relations.4) Fish out of water: notice that they are all fishermen, discover the girl during a fishing trip and therefore the "fish out of water" symbolism begins to play a role. Billy is a fish out of water: the only one in town always on his mobile. The two main characters are Irish and American. If you think the produces decided that Gabriel Byrne would be better publicity than an Australian actor, you're wrong. Their nationality gave them a 'fish out of water' flavour - especially in rural Australia – and worked to provide a 'fish out of water' perspective on the issues raised in this film. In particular, the American seemed intent on doing the "American" thing and confronting this head on, teaching your child valuable lessons and falling over yourself to ensure that your public image is maintained. Yet - she seems dramatically out of place, not only in terms of the town but also out of place with the Aborigines she so desperately tries to reconcile with.5) The setting: Snowy River Hydro-Electric project. This was to do with the white man disrupting nature and landscape.6) The underlying theme: IRRECONCILABLE DIFFERENCES. Now reconciliation was an obvious aspect because Aborigines featured prominently in the film. But there were other aspects of this film that explored the notion of irreconcilable differences. In marriage (between the two main characters) and between the American and the town & Aborigines. As other reviewers pointed out, the director prefers to leave this complex issue unresolved... as Australia has with the Aborigines.I also felt that the dead girl was tied to a tree by her ankle to symbolise the white man almost violently "holding back" the blacks or perhaps treating them like dogs (tie them to a tree).7) Whether we acknowledge it or not, we are weighted down by our past. Every character seems to have a past bogging them down. The grandmother of the boy remains a burden of her son's and daughter-in-law's past transgressions. The mum who vanished during her first two years of motherhood created a burden of sorts on her son. Byrne's take on his son nearly drowning was that, if she was around in his early years, perhaps she would have taught him to swim! Simple enough, but a rather complex point: even minor PAST neglect can ripple into massive consequences. Whether this is a general statement or a statement with reference to Aborigines is unclear.The fact that the boy nearly drowns in that lake is also interesting. Perhaps we are being "pulled down" by our past? Or perhaps when it comes to Australia's past and the modern-day white man, its like swimming at the top lake, aware but oblivious to the bottom of the lake (the past).8) The end. Everyone seems bewildered by the ending. Now I thought that people who were waiting for him to get caught or get his justice MISSED the entire point of the film: there is no justice. That's it! The Aborigines receive no justice for past mistreatment, justice is not served on the murderer, the unjust outcome for the Irish husband and his American wife at memorial service, even though they come offering their apologies and support (perhaps saying "sorry" is simply too hollow to reconcile the situation. Maybe respect from the start over an apology for a transgression is the solution - possibly a cryptic message), Byrne seems to be unjustly treated by his wife (for example, when his nose is broken), yet he works hard to provide and was forced to raise their son alone during her 'unexplained' absence. And on that issue, she unjustly presses him for answers about the body, but refuses to openly discuss why she left after giving birth. It seems that every day injustices are woven into this story and it would appear that we just have to work out a way to confront and deal with them. If not, they become a burden of our past.Accordingly, I don't think they were implying that the killer was allergic to wasps and was stung and died - although more than a few people think that this may have been the implication. The wasp or fly or whatever it was played a simpler role in my view. He killed that girl simply like killing a black fly that was bothering him. Whether there is a connection to racism here is somewhat elusive. Perhaps he is a racist killer and represents the ghosts of the past and evil committed against Aborigines? This explains why he let the "white" woman go. But then again, he may simply represent pure evil that will always persist? Bit of a slap in the face; which is exactly how the film ends.
Wonderful cinematography, wonderful acting. An unsettling yet satisfying film
posted on 24 Aug 2009It's the story of four male friends who go fishing over a weekend and find the body of an indigenous girl in a river. They don' report the incident immediately, as there is nothing anyone can do anyway, and so report it when they return as originally planned. The community is disgusted by their behaviour, some citing it as racist ("If it were a white girl you'd have reported is immediately"), others just seeing them as sick. What we as audience observe is the reactions of the men's families; how they all deal with the issue and with each other. Gabriel Byrne plays Stuart, protagonist if you will, and Laura Linney his American wife Claire. Both have immigrated to Australia, so the actors use their own accents. These two are the central family in the story, and their history factors in to the way Claire deals with Stuart finding a body. There is quite a bit of indigenous Australian culture shown in the film, particularly the girls burial ceremony, which is a very poignant scene in the film. This was quite unsettling to watch, but very well put together. Some Beautiful cinematography of Jindabyne itself, and the surrounding mallee area, the mountains and arid scrub land. The whole film, with the exception if one scene, was done in single takes, and the acting is remarkable. AS a result, the film flows well, and the characters' characterization is remarkably constant.Go and see it if you can. It was just remarkable, if a little unsettling.