Lantana (2001)

The relationships of four couples unravel after the discovery of a young woman's body in Lantana bush in suburban Sydney.

Director:

Ray Lawrence

Writers:

Andrew Bovell (screenplay), Andrew Bovell (play)

Stars:

Anthony LaPaglia, Geoffrey Rush, Rachael Blake

36 wins & 22 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Anthony LaPaglia	...	Leon
Rachael Blake	...	Jane
Kerry Armstrong	...	Sonja
Manu Bennett	...	Steve (as Jon Bennett)
Melissa Martinez	...	Lisa
Owen McKenna	...	Old Man in Pyjamas
Nicholas Cooper	...	Sam
Marc Dwyer	...	Dylan
Puven Pather	...	Drug Dealer
Lionel Tozer	...	Police Officer
Glenn Suter	...	Police Officer
Leah Purcell	...	Claudia
Barbara Hershey	...	Valerie
Natasha Guthrie	...	Young Girl
James Cullington	...	Man at Book Launch

Storyline

The intertwined stories of a loosely tied set of mostly emotionally damaged individuals in Sydney are told. Police detective Leon Zat and his wife Sonja Zat probably still love each other but have not stated to each other the problems that have invaded their marriage. Those problems not only affect their relationship, but also the way they parent their two teenage sons. Leon's single partner, Detective Claudia Weis, can probably most clearly see those problems, but is not equipped to be a good informal counselor to him in she considering the eye contact with another regular at the diner she frequents as being a somewhat committed relationship. A bundle of repressed emotions, Leon vents through mostly inappropriate acts of aggression, and having just embarked in an extramarital affair with Jane O'May, the recently separated woman in the same salsa dance class as him and Sonja. Jane initiated that separation from her husband, Pete O'May, in coming to the realization one day that she no ...

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Plot Keywords:

rear entry sex | adulterous wife | lust | scantily clad female | nylons | 

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Taglines:

love is the greatest mystery

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and sexuality

Did You Know?

Trivia

Anthony LaPaglia had to work with a dialect coach to regain his native Australian accent. He had lost it from years of working on American movies.

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Goofs

When Sonja and Leon are in bed, the crew is reflected in a large standing mirror.

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Quotes

Leon Zat: [the morning after Leon admitted having an affair] I fucked up, all right? People fuck up.
Sonja Zat: Really? Well, I don't. You know what's so easy, Leon? It's so easy to go out and find somebody. You know what's hard? What's hard is not to.

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Crazy Credits

Grateful acknowledgement of assistance to all our families

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: 25 Years of Margaret & David (2011)

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Soundtracks

Te Busco
(1993)
Written by Víctor Víctor
Courtesy of Flamboyan Publishing / Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Performed by Celia Cruz
Courtesy of Rmm Records & Video Corp.

User Reviews

A rare accomplishment

"Lantana" is one of those rare films which which transcends entertainment with meaningful messages, however subliminal, while avoiding the dumbing-down, flocking, hype, titillation, and other excesses of the usual Tinseltown product and relying solely on good story telling. The film uses the nonlinear Magnoia-esque jigsaw puzzle approach showing a piece of each player one at a time while methodically completing the final puzzle picture. Though the film involves a cop, a shrink, a missing woman, infidelity, adultery, grief, suspicion, etc., "Lantana" isn't about any of these things; a fact which is made clear in the end when the final puzzle piece is dropped into place. A must see for mature realists into serious drama.

Details

Official Sites:

Lions Gate Films [United States]

Country:

Australia Germany

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

8 March 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

Lantana

Filming Locations:

Balmain, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$66,701, 16 December 2001

Gross USA:

$4,623,189

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$15,747,450

Company Credits

Production Co:

MBP (Germany), Jan Chapman Productions, Australian Film Finance Corporation (AFFC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

121 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1