Tom Budge Movies

In this lively musical comedy drama set in the late '60s, Willie (Rocky McKenzie) is a 16-year-old living in Broome, an Aboriginal community on the western coast of Australia. Willie is an easygoing kid who doesn't ask for much from life beyond enjoying time with his friends and getting a date with Rosie (Jessica Mauboy), a pretty girl who attends the same church. But Willie's mother thinks he should be following a more responsible path, and convinces him to transfer to a Catholic boarding school for boys in Perth. It doesn't take long for Willie to run afoul of Father Benedictus (Geoffrey Rush), the school's iron-willed headmaster, and Willie runs away. Stranded in Perth, Willie is befriended by Uncle Tadpole (Ernie Dingo), a streetwise character who lived in Broome as a youngster. Uncle Tadpole offers to help Willie get back home, and they hit the highway, hitchhiking back to Broome and catching rides with a handful of colorful strangers, including Teutonic tourist Slippery (Tom Budge) and flower child Annie (Missy Higgins). But as Willie and Uncle Tadpole make their way across the continent, Father Benedictus is in hot pursuit, determined not to let a truant slip from his grasp. Bran Nue Dae was adapted from the hit stage musical by Jimmy Chi that was a major box-office success and multiple award winner in Australia during the early '90s; the film version received its word premiere at the 2009 Melbourne Film Festival, where it received the Audience Award for Best Film. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

A family reunion stirs up some painful memories for a young man in this drama from Australia. Elliot Christie (Daniel Frederiksen) is a wealthy and respected self-made businessman who lives and works in Sydney. Elliot is returning home to Adelaide for the first time in ten years to attending the christening of his nephew. While this might seem like a happy occasion, Elliot isn't looking forward to seeing his family -- his father Ross (Geoff Morrell) is an angry and abusive man with a serious drinking problem, and his brother Brett (Tom Budge) has sunk into a crippling depression since his career as an athlete came to and end. Elliot left home in order to make something of himself, but while he's come back at the request of Diane (Lucy Bell), his late mother's sister, the familial conflicts he left behind are still there, and Elliot still has plenty of issues with his father and brother. Ten Empty was the first directorial credit for actor Anthony Hayes. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Marc Gracie's Australian comedy Take Away concerns a business rivalry between fast food entrepreneurs. Starting with a segment that shows the birth of fast food, the film quickly establishes the relationship between Tony (Vince Colosimo) and Trevor (Stephen Curry). The anal Tony runs a fish and chip stand more or less right next to the free-wheeling Trevor's more exotic stand that offers calamari burgers. The two have known each other forever, as their fathers owned a restaurant together. They had a falling out and the feud has been passed down to the sons. After they learn that a large fast food corporation, Burgies, is coming into the area, Tony and Trevor work together to stop them. John Howard portrays the head of the Burgies company. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi