Dead Letter Office (1998)

Director:

John Ruane

Writers:

Deborah Cox (written by)
Francis Veber (writer)

Release Date:

20 August 1998 (Australia)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

A story of love and lost letters

Plot:

Alice's father left when she was a child. She continued to share her life with him in letters that she sent not realising that he never received them...

Plot Keywords:

Letter | Australia | Love | Post Office | Independent Film

Awards:

3 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Miranda Otto	...	Alice Walsh
George DelHoyo	...	Frank Lopez
Nicholas Bell	...	Kevin
Syd Brisbane	...	Peter
Georgina Naidu	...	Mary
Jane Hall	...	Heather
Jillian O'Dowd	...	Lizzy
Vanessa Steele	...	Carmen
Guillermina Ulloa	...	Lucia
Franko Milostnik	...	Vicente
Mark Wilson	...	Youth
Barry Otto	...	Gerald Urquhart / Hartnell
Alethea McGrath	...	Gardening Woman
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
David Allardice	...	Orquesta del Barrio
Marly Balladaros	...	Chile Lindo Dancer
Alicia Banit	...	Young Alice
Mariette Carey	...	Miss Harris
George Carmona	...	Orquesta del Barrio
Michael Carmona	...	Orquesta del Barrio
Gualberto Casas	...	Orquesta del Barrio
Bill Desailly	...	Cueca Band
Pedro Diaz	...	Cueca Band
Carole Fraser	...	Aboriginal Woman
Manual Guajardo	...	Chile Lindo Dancer
Jose Hernandez	...	Cueca Band
Ellen Hundley	...	Cueca Band
Jacquie Lee	...	Car Yard Woman
Cecilia Lopez	...	Chile Lindo Dancer
Ruth Lopez	...	Chile Lindo Dancer
Danny Madden	...	Orquesta del Barrio
Hector Manonella	...	Cueca Band
Marc Matthews	...	Orquesta del Barrio
Gustavo Molina	...	Chile Lindo Dancer
Hernán Morales	...	Chile Lindo Dancer (as Hernan Morales)
Tess Mornana	...	Young Alice (voice)
Patricia Perez	...	Chile Lindo Dancer
Fernando Redon	...	Orquesta del Barrio
Aldo Riquelma	...	Cueca Band
Irina Riquelme	...	Cueca Band
Leo Salvo	...	Orquesta del Barrio
Malcolm Singh	...	Victor
Christian Tapia	...	Cueca Band
Alex Vargas	...	Cueca Band
Siboney Villegas	...	Chile Lindo Dancer

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

Australia

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:M

Company:

Artist Services

Trivia:

Real life father and daughter Barry Otto and Miranda Otto also appear as father and daughter in this film.

Quirky character tale from Down Under

You know all those letters to "Father Christmas" and "Jesus" that are sent every year? Well, it turns out that they are not actually delivered but dropped off in a half-forgotten corner of the post office to rot unless some bright spark figures out a way of posting them. As bizarre settings go, it's a winner and one which perfectly fits the strange movie that is "Dead Letter Office". Having said that, this is obviously an Australian film as opposed to a British one. If it was Royal Mail, most letters get this sort of treatment anyway. I haven't been in this flat for two years and we're still getting letters for a Mr Wang, some female priest of the Church of Latter Day I've-Never-Heard-Of-You and various catalogues for industrial equipment addressed to a plumbing company.

"Dead Letter Office" (the name given to the place where undeliverable mail ends up) follows the story of Alice (Miranda Otto) who grows up in a seriously divided home. Writing to her absent father, she only learns in adulthood that her letters haven't been delivered for one reason or another. So, logically, she gets a job at the D.L.O. and finds herself working alongside other social rejects including the brooding Chilean immigrant Frank Lopez (George Del Hoyo). Slowly, she finds herself drawn to him but can she find out where her dad is without bringing the self-contained world of the Dead Letters Office to its knees?

Nothing against this film but I was reminded of the god-awful Heather Graham film "Committed" while watching this. However, this is so much better than that pile of horse crap but then again, that ain't difficult. For a start, this film is much more logical. True, the metaphors are somewhat blatant and the underflowing symbolism quickly becomes a flood. But at least this is cohesive and quirky without being complete drivel. It is also well acted. Both Otto and Del Hoyo are very good as the lovers looking for something they know they'll never find while other characters are peripheral at best. Part of the trouble is that it seems to wrap up far too quickly, leaving this viewer somewhat disappointed. The other part is that when you consider Australia's draconian immigration policy (i.e. if you don't speak English, rack off!), such a story is unlikely to take place in reality. The other characters, sadly, also help to destabilise the realism by proving to be little more than odd-ball stereotypes.

Despite that, "Dead Letter Office" is certainly something a little different. It might not be to everyone's taste but I liked it. Yes, it was hackneyed and predictable but sometimes, it's nice to watch a film without guns or violence or heavy-duty swearing and nudity (no chance of that in an Australian film). There ain't any major laughs, there's no Bullet Time and the characters are usually one-dimensional. But it's the story that counts here and while it's not earth-shattering in its magnificence, it's a pleasant enough way of passing the time. It's the movie equivalent of a Sheryl Crow CD - nice to listen to now and again but you wouldn't really miss it if it wasn't there.