Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Cate Blanchett | ... | Tracy | |
Sam Neill | ... | The Jockey | |
Hugo Weaving | ... | Lionel | |
Martin Henderson | ... | Ray | |
Noni Hazlehurst | ... | Janelle | |
Dustin Nguyen | ... | Jonny | |
Joel Tobeck | ... | Moss | |
Lisa McCune | ... | Laura | |
Susie Porter | ... | Jenny | |
Nina Liu | ... | Mai | |
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Linda Cropper | ... | Denise |
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Daniela Farinacci | ... | Donna |
Ferdinand Hoang | ... | Khiem | |
Anh Do | ... | Tran | |
Jason Chong | ... | Mingh |
In Sydney, Tracey Heart is a thirty-two years old manager of a video shop, an ex-heroin addict whose been clean for four years. She is trying to raise $40,000 to buy a shop for computer games next door to the rental and to become partner of her boss; but based on her negative records, the banks deny the loan. Tracey takes care of her junkie stepfather Lionel Dawson, unsuccessfully trying to make him quit his heroin habit. When her former boyfriend Jonny returns from Vancouver, Tracey's mother Janelle fears a fall for Tracey, while she blames Jonny for the car accident where her son Ray lost a leg. When Ray and Jonny associate with Moss, the assistant of the retired criminal boss Bradley 'The Jockey' Thompson, in drug dealing, Tracey is convinced by Jonny to join them and raise the necessary money for her business during the weekend. Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
It's a disturbingly honest film portraying a hauntingly familiar life and how it is affected by the seamy drug/underworld of Sydney's Asian community. That's not to say that only the Asian community has drug and underworld problems, but it makes for an interesting and colourful backdrop for a complicated but compelling story. In fact, even now two hours after we left the cinema, I'm still mildly troubled by the seeming hopelessness of the confused lives portrayed. It was so real, so close to the bone. The characters could easily be you, or me. As another reviewer stated:
"There's no light-the tunnel goes on forever." A pretty accurate assessment.
I've heard it said that for Blanchett and Weaving their performances rank as personal bests, but I'm not all that sure I'd go that far with Weavings. He was good, very, very good as the broken-down drug-ridden ex-football star but Blanchett's performance as the reformed addict desperately trying to get her life together, to set up her own business and actually resurrect something from the pathetic life she has, was absolutely amazing. Her character is both complex and simplistic all at once. You can detest and love her, feel sympathy and disdain and find by movie's end you're aware that she could so easily be you.
Included in the cast as perennials the likes of Noni Hazlehurst, Lisa McCune and Sam Neill all played sound parts but not a patch on the leads. The balance of the cast are movie journeymen/women who have many and varied backgrounds. None were overly outstanding, although I found the character of Jonny, Blanchett's former boyfriend played by Dustin Nguyen to be quite well done. He disgusted me for what he was and what he wanted to be and that's the actors art.
Go and see this flick. It's an outstanding example of the Australian film industry's capabilities. I rate it 8 out of 10.