Australian films tend to be far more relaxed and more willing to poke fun at themselves than American and British films (sometimes). Generally they will deal with people on the fringe of society or some kind of big battle against governments, but throughout them there’s a real sense of the underdog – the hero is always down and out in some way. We don’t see a lot of hunky men doing somersaults and blowing up tankers. This is partly a reflection of our culture, but it’s also very much to do with how the Australian film financiers move their money. With limited budgets we tend to make more dialogue-driven films set in average-looking locations without the big explosions and stunts. Most films that are truly ‘Australian’ have this sensibility… a sort of economical stillness and self deprecation. At the same time, there’s a tendency to make heavier more artistic or philosophical films because, hey, if you only make 10 films a year at least make them serious ones! There’s not really a “popcorn” movie industry in Australia. In fact, there’s not really a year-round film industry in Australia at all anymore, so torrenting these movies is a dick move – we need jobs dammit!
With that in mind, here are the best ones in Reverse chronological order:
Animal Kingdon is a chilling film about a famous crime family in Melbourne, has Guy Pearce in it (who is amazing). Beautiful cinematography and an interesting story.
Mary and Max is an animated film directed by Oscar winner Adam Elliot (for his short film Harvey Krumpet which is also amazing) about a correspondance, apparently based on a true story, between a New Yorker with Aspergers and a young Australian girl.
Rabbit Proof Fence is good, but very heavy. It’s about the Australian Aborigines and a journey away from forced settlement back to their original tribes.
Looking for Alibrandi is a great film and explores the second-generation migrant experience which is a common experience for a great number of Australians (around 50% of Australians are migrants or the children of migrants).
The Dish is about how the Parkes Observatory relayed the Apollo 11 transmissions back to the USA. It’s pretty funny.
The Wog Boy is pretty trashy, but also an entertaining insight into Australian culture (or at least a caricature of it)
The Castle possibly one of the greatest Australian anythings to have been made. This film is the bible of Australian film and almost perfect. It’s fucking hilarious, perfectly reflects the Australian mindset and the typical lower to middle-class Aussie. It’s kind of scary how accurate it is at times. If you haven’t seen this film, you haven’t lived.
Moving on… The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert stars Hugo Weaving (Matrix, Lord of the Rings, V for Vendetta etc.) as a drag queen on a roadtrip through the Australian outback.
Malcom is a fun film, admittedly another one about someone with a mental disability (I’m sensing a theme here) that is very entertaining. It’s also set in Melbourne, and obviously so, which is less common than films set in and around Sydney.
Gallipoli is a war film, with a young Mel Gibson, about the conflict in Turkey which is apparently a key part of our national identity (much to many people’s distaste) and which purports a number of the myths about the events. Nevertheless, its an excellent film.
Honourable mention The Lost Thing by Shaun Tan, a short film which won the Oscar in 2011. Narrated by comedian Tim Minchin. This film has a real Western Australian flavour to it… it’s hard to explain.
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