After all the negative reviews, I was pleasantly surprised by Australia. Yet it's very hard to describe it as a "good" film because in some ways it's excellent, and in other ways formulaic. I loved the cinematography, and if the film gets an Oscar, that's what it should be for. It's very long because it essentially has two plots, one cattle story with good guys and bad guys which belongs in the realms of cowboy films, and another story of interracial mistreatment which is straight out of the Hollywood politically correct playbook. Also in the mix are love, war, clash of cultures, mismanagement by the government/religious authorities, and lessons in the ethnic culture of the Australian aborigines.
Perhaps it's best to think of it as Australia's equivalent to that nine-hour travel commercial for New Zealand, Lord of the Rings. Baz Luhrmann has tried to ground the story in reality, rather than using the fantasy genre of LOTR. The end result is worth watching on the big screen, but I don't imagine it'll sell on DVD as well as LOTR did ... the story is just too predictable for that.
Perhaps it's best to think of it as Australia's equivalent to that nine-hour travel commercial for New Zealand, Lord of the Rings. Baz Luhrmann has tried to ground the story in reality, rather than using the fantasy genre of LOTR. The end result is worth watching on the big screen, but I don't imagine it'll sell on DVD as well as LOTR did ... the story is just too predictable for that.