Martha's New Coat (2003)

Life sucks in the small, depressed inland town where Martha lives. Shops are shutting, people are leaving and there is nothing for the teenagers to do, except hang round the parks and drink... See full summary »

Director:

Rachel Ward

Writer:

Elizabeth J. Mars

Stars:

Rod Ansell, Adrian Auld, Matilda Brown

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
Rod Ansell	...	Cop
Adrian Auld	...	Ben
Matilda Brown	...	Martha
Alycia Debnam Carey	...	Elsie
Lisa Hensley	...	Sarah
Daniel Krige	...	The Truckie
Dan Wyllie	...	Frank

Storyline

Life sucks in the small, depressed inland town where Martha lives. Shops are shutting, people are leaving and there is nothing for the teenagers to do, except hang round the parks and drink a little illegal booze. The adults of the town are bound up with their own concerns and view the youth with dismissive loathing. The nights are bleak, filled with predatory older men and racial tension between warring groups of teenage girls. It's Martha's birthday and the day is not turning out so well, a girl at school wants to beat her up , her father hasn't been heard from for years, and as for her mother, she hasn't seemed to registered Martha for a long time. The one bright spot in Martha's domestic life is her little sister Elsie, whose innocence and delight in life is undiminished by the squalor of her surroundings. Martha decides to get out of town and seek some excitement on the coast. This is one birthday she doesn't want to forget even if she has to make it memorable herself. Filled ...

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Plot Keywords:

character name in title

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 April 2005 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Porchlight Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

52 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

User Reviews

Moving portrait of a teen girl's troubled world

Superb social realism!

Martha's new coat is a birthday present. Martha turns fifteen living in a low income household which means well but which does not realise that she has emerging emotional needs. She sets off to find her father who left the family some years earlier.

The whole film is excellently realised. Actress Matilda Brown delivers a sensitive attractive compelling central character. With a glance or a gesture she speaks volumes of the emotional yearning and confusion of an adolescent at a transition in life.

I was deeply moved by this low key but deeply honest film.