Review of Mystery Road

My daughter suggested we see this film together. She told me she'd seen it and liked it but also felt like it might make more sense if she saw it again--and on a TV with captions instead of in the theater. This is because this Australian film is set in a very rural portion of Queensland, Australia and the language is very different for us. In other words, while they're speaking English, there are a lot of colloquial words and phrases she just didn't understand the first time she saw it and a few of the accents were a bit thick. I couldn't help her that much even though I spent a few weeks in Australia--this certainly didn't make me an expert on the country. Plus, all the time I was there I was in the much more cosmopolitan portions of New South Wales and Victoria. So for folks like us Americans, the film might pose a few challenges. My advice is still watch it--but try to bring along an Australian friend to help you understand everything that is occurring. Additionally, I should point out that the film is, at times, deliberately vague.

The story is about a detective investigating the murder of a young Aboriginal girl. He is himself half Aboriginal and you get the impression that this is really important in the film--but exactly how is, again, something that might help to understand if you have Australians sitting with you watching. What exactly happened to the girl is difficult, as there aren't a lot of apparent clues. And when the big confrontation at the end occurs, you STILL aren't sure who is who (especially Hugo Weaving's character). Worth seeing but confusing and worth repeated views because of this.