Director: Jocelyn Moorhouse
Screenplay: Jocelyn Moorhouse
Starring: Kate Winslet, Liam Hemsworth, Hugo Weaving, Judy Davis, Sarah Snook, Gyton Grantley, Darcey Wilson, Barry Otto
118 minutes Rated: M
118 minutes Rated: M
The return of the Prodigal is one of those enduring themes
in fiction, books particularly but also in film. Some might consider it a trope
(a now very commonly used insult which I have to admit I only became aware of
in the last year or so), but I find it compelling when done well. In the
vaguely gothic farce ‘The Dressmaker’ the device works more than well.
It’s 1951 - come the night come the prodigal as Tilly
Dunnage (the divine Kate Winslet)returns to her childhood hometown Dungatar in
country Victoria. Soon we learn her Singer sewing machine is not the only ‘baggage’
she brings with her. She believes she carries a curse from an inconclusive and ambiguous
incident as a schoolchild related to her implication in the death of a fellow
schoolmate. Far from being welcomed home the townsfolk rather see her as a ‘murderess’
back to stir up divisions and skeletons from the past. Her bridge to gaining some respectability is
her dressmaking/haute couture abilities (she has been working in Paris for
years learning the trade)and don’t the locals flock to be frocked up. But there's more things going on in this story than, well in a country town on a summer's Tuesday.
Sentiment doesn’t get much of a go in this ever so slightly
exaggerated and cartoonish feature beautifully crafted by Jocelyn Moorhouse
(and second unit by none other than PJ Hogan) but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t
have heart or charm and even skirts some dark and tough matters. I don’t think
the town’s name is some mere whimsy; this is a smelly hell hole where the kooky
and snippy characters are trapped by or in their own limited world view. Also
surely the allegorical names of characters (Harridiene and Pettyman for two)
are deliberately invented.
The cast is almost all without equal as you would expect
when you have an Academy Award winner (Winslet) and a company of Australia’s
most familiar actors. The only bum note for me was Rebecca Gibney, who I
usually admire, who was just not right. Judy Davis was perfect as the stroppy
Mad Molly, pure cartoon but Davis still managed to give her nuance and totally
engages the audience, man she’s good. Barry Otto, Sarah Snook, Gyton Grantley, Shane
Bourne, Julia Blake and Sacha Horler were absolutely bloody sensational. Hugo
Weaving was pretty good too but maybe a little too ‘wink, wink ,nudge, nudge’
for my liking. In the beautifully done flashback scenes I particularly enjoyed
Darcey Wilson as the young Tilly, wonderful. Liam of the Hemsworth cult made
the most of his role (and body) and was a perfect (if somewhat age match
disconnect) romantic foil for Tilly. And it was great to see Kate Winslet and
Kerry Fox back on screen again after a long break.
This was an entertaining, polished and engaging movie filmed
in lovely locations in country Victoria. The flashback scenes (and the opening credits)
had a stunning palate and look to them which contrasted beautifully with the
golden, dry and colourful scenes of 1951.
From the popular novel by Melbourne’s own Rosalie Ham (who
wrote the original ‘treatment’ a few years back), this is a gorgeous
entertainment that I encourage everyone to see. Lush, tasteful, a little out of
kilter and a lot accomplished because of precise writing, masterly direction
and the best that good actors can deliver.
4 out of 5
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