Sydney - Sydney film director Baz Luhrmann must have been
smarting Wednesday after newspapers in the United States gave
generally unfavourable reviews of the romantic melodrama Australia.
But locals rallied round, queuing for tickets and sticking up for
a film that showcases local talent and which set a national record
with its 150-million-US-dollar budget.
'We thought we'd see it on the first day because it's Australia,
about Australia,' said Sydney resident Stan Plantzos. 'And Nicole
Kidman, we love her.'
A sentiment not shared by London Times critic Melanie Reid, who
charged Luhrmann with a 'fatal error' in casting Kidman opposite Hugh
Jackman.
Alone among the North American papers, the New York Times had
praise for Kidman, with critic Manohla Dargis declaring 'she's
wonderfully and fully expressive here, from wince-worthy start to
heartbreaking finish, whether she's wrinkling her nose in mock
disgust or rushing across a dusty field, her arms pumping so wildly
that it's a wonder well water doesn't spring from her mouth.'
The New York Daily News gave Jackman higher marks than Kidman, but
wasn't impressed with the 165-minute offering. 'With Australia,
Luhrmann obviously intends to stage a grand romance against the epic
backdrop of World War II,' it opined. 'But what we get instead is an
unwieldy mess that needed another six months in the editing room.'
Liam Lacey, writing in Canada's Globe and Mail, picks up a common
theme in accusing Luhrmann of stuffing too much into his first
feature since 2001's successful Moulin Rouge!
'All in all, Australia is so damnably eager to please that it
feels like being pinned down by a giant overfriendly dingo and having
your face licked for about three hours: theoretically endearing but,
honestly, kind of gross,' Lacey writes.
Lisa Schwarbaum, writing in Entertainment Weekly, complains that
'missing the 'e' in epic, the filmmaker has produced a laboured pic
weighed down by the very artifice that is traditionally his
specialty.'
In USA Today, Luhrmann is berated for a 'melodramatic exercise in
tedium' that offers only 'schmaltz and cliché.'
The poor reception abroad was starkly different from the warmth
Luhrmann received at home. Local critics said that, while no
masterpiece, Australia would fill cinemas and reward those paying to
fill them.
Only one local was openly hostile, and even then used a pseudonym
when posting a review on the internet.
'On behalf of the 21 million Australians who were not involved in
this film, I apologize to the rest of the world,' the blogger wrote.
'Please punish those involved in the development, production and
green-lighting of this national embarrassment for their hubris by
keeping your wallet in your pocket.'
USA
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