the proposition
I found another film today to add to the long list of movies-I’d-like-to-see-but-never-quite-get-to: The Proposition.
Better yet, Dave5 doesn’t seem to have mentioned it yet (he got there first on the current round of hype for Richard Linklater’s intriguing rotoscoped rendition of Philip K. Dick’s A Scanner Darkly) so I can proceed without fear of boring our maybe three mutual readers.
Written by Nick Cave (you see, that got your attention), with soundtrack by Mr Cave plus comix legend Warren Ellis (a match made in heaven, if it were true: it’s actually the undoubtably equally talented Warren Ellis of the Dirty Three – had me going for a bit there, that coincidence in name), it’s an Australian Western (getting even better): heat, flies, dust, and a bit of a Peckinpah-ish bloodbath by all accounts.
There’s a trailer on the site worth checking out. The basic story goes like this: Local lawman catches the two younger brothers in a trio of sibling bushrangers; threatens to execute the youngest (who is 14) if the middle brother doesn’t hunt down and kill the eldest, who is completely psycho.
It’s been out in Australia for months and months, is released in the UK in the next week or so (from where I picked up the hype) but what seems to be its first showings in New Zealand are not until April in the World Cinema Showcase. Australian film doesn’t always get the best showing in this country – and I’m just as guilty of ignoring decent Aussie films as anyone else.
On the other hand, perhaps I could just order the DVD from Australia – it was released last week.
Anyway, some reviews:
(Epilogue: In fact, I’ve now convinced myself to buy it from EzyDVD in Australia – even with postage it costs less than NZ$35 and maybe Becky and I can watch it this weekend for much less than the cost+hassle+delay of the alternative. )
Gryfon
3 March 2006, 12:54 #
Their add-on for postage is a bit steep. Your local agent (*blushes modestly*) would be happy to arrange purchase from the JB Hi-Fi place 300m up the road just past the local shopping mall (or the Ezy DVD store in the mall 200m up the road) and ship via Australia Post’s store (also in the mall – are you spotting a trend here?) ‘The Proposition’ is not a bad movie, although I found it a bit derivative. BTW, it seems like the deferred release issue runs both ways – I have to wait until June for Anthony Hopkins in ‘The World’s Fastest Indian’ and I have found nothing at all about an Australian release for ‘River Queen’. Though judging by the reviews, I may have dodged a bullet there.
Alan
3 March 2006, 13:13 #
I didn’t think the postage was too bad really – just AU$3.50 – so probably not worth putting you to all that trouble.
Thanks for the offer though. :-)
With all those malls, you must be pleased you took your car to Aussie…
Unfortunately I missed both the latter movies you mention, so can’t offer any opinions. You may be right on River Queen though – reviews are a little mixed.
Gryfon
9 March 2006, 12:20 #
That postage price is good – I doubt you’d be able to send something the other way for $3.50. If you do succumb to ordering DVDs from overseas suppliers then be careful about the rate for multiple DVDs – boxed sets typically incur a significant penalty (presumably Australia Post operates a low weight threshold).
On the good news front, ‘The World’s Fastest Indian’ now seems to be scheduled for an April release. No pre-feature trailers showing yet, but I found one on the Apple movies site and I’m looking forward to it.
Insomnius
11 May 2006, 13:41 #
Just a note that the Warren Ellis on the Proposition Soundtrack is actually Warren Ellis of The Dirty Three, not the comic guy.