SPOTLIGHT ON: The Proposition Australia, 104 min. Director: John Hillcoat
The most promising film in the festivalís World Focus category, Bad Seed Nick Caveís second collaboration with director John Hillcoat transfers the American western to the 19th-century Australian Outback. Two outlaw brothers, Charlie Burns (Guy Pearce) and Mike Burns (Richard Wilson), are captured after a bloody shootout by Captain Stanley (Ray Winstone), an English captain bent on civilizing rural Australia. The two brothers face execution unless Charlie carries out Stanleyís proposition to kill the eldest and most dangerous Burns brother, Author (Danny Huston). Caveís screenplay references traditional westerns themes of modernity and frontier justice, but The Proposition is more Deadwood than High Noon, and it parallels the ominous, unsettling mood of Caveís music. Critically acclaimed in Australia, winning five Australian Film Institute Awards, The Proposition is recommended for fans of Cave and the genre. ó Ryan Creed
Playing: Ritz Five, 9:30 PM, Tonight; Ritz East Theater 2, 5:00 PM, Friday.
ALSO RECOMMENDED:
Beethoven’s Hair: Two men win a lock of hair believed to be Beethovenís at a Sothebyís auction, and they use modern science to authenticate it. An impressive documentary, but Iím waiting for the Jurassic Park-type sequel.
Isolation: An Irish horror movie about genetically mutated cow fetuses that prey on the inhabitants of a small farm. What else can I say?
Kinky Boots: The festival throws a bone to the Gayborhood with this story of a small town shoe factory that stays financially afloat by producing a footwear line for drag queens.
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This entry was posted on Thursday, April 6th, 2006 at 12:57 pm.