Glenys Rowe Movies
- 1999
Australian newcomer Davida Allen's film is a sharp, funny look at a woman's attempts to balance her passions with her responsibilities. All Vicki (Susie Porter) wants is passionate, romantic sex. Unfortunately, she finds herself married to a self-absorbed doctor who is rarely home and saddled with two screaming babies. She is not feeling sexy. At first she resorts to Walter Mitty-like fantasies about big muscular men. But when she takes a part-time job as a painting instructor and catches the eye of a sultry bohemian type, she risks losing her husband and her family. Later she manages to fuse her fantasies with her artistic urges in a manner both funny and touching for the man she loves. This film was screened at the 1999 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Susie Porter, Tamblyn Lord, (more)
Low-down and earthy, this Australian comedy, the sophomore effort from director David Caesar, tells the tale of two jobless Sydney slackers who try to become bank robbers. Though they could be out looking hard for work, Kev and Mick prefer to wile their days away drinking beer and watching crime dramas on television. They only show motivation when they run out of suds, though Kev does occasionally take time have sex with his girlfriend Betty on the living room couch in between shows. Mick is attracted to Lani, the pretty virgin who works in their favorite drive-through liquor store. It doesn't take long for Mick to steal Lani away from her older brother's overprotective eye and become her lover. Shortly thereafter Mick and Kev, feeling they have learned all they can from the telly, begin plotting their first heist. Unfortunately, a pair of robbers dressed as clowns rob the boys' intended bank before they do and this brings in a pair of detectives. Throw in the obstacles presented by the neighborhood crime lord, and the stage is set for the story's darkly humorous conclusion. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1995
The Australian nuns profiled in this video provide an exceptional window in to how modern nuns are finding ways to combine older practices with more modern ones. As many know, most nuns long ago had to endure lives almost completely separate from secular culture and its unique forms of self-expression. Their daily lives were planned around extensive prayer and often long periods of silence. As more modern times and Vatican II rolled around, many nuns began to question the austere nature of their existence. Large numbers of them left their convents, questioning the vow of celibacy and other basic practices. Others chose to stay and redefine their daily lives. This is a respectful portrait that brings out the special individuality of some of the women who share their thoughts in this film. ~ Elizabeth Smith, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Done in an unusual documentary style, this movie depicts the seamier side of life in Bangkok as it reveals the lifestyle of a prostitute who becomes involved with a filmmaker who is trying to discover the meaning of "love." Unfortunately, the documentary format is so nebulous that the viewer is unable to tell reality from fiction and this somewhat hampers comprehension and viewability. ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Lawn bowling is a very different sport from the kind that occurs indoors; it is an almost meditative exercise resembling nothing so much as horseshoes and is much favored by the elderly in one Sydney suburb. In this low-key comedy, the lad who works very diligently to keep the bowling green immaculate has just gotten out of jail. Despite his good intentions and energetic hard work, he's just not very effective. Maybe it's all the pot he and his wife have been smoking, as now the two of them are in debt to their dealer for thousands of dollars. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Max Cullen
- 1991
Fans of Dame Edna and her ilk may find the home-grown corny Australian humor of The Castanets right up their alley. This documentary is designed especially to please the fans of this extremely popular ten-member comedy group and contains portions of three performances in Bondi. The dramatic conceit framing these performances is that a club manager is looking desperately for some inexpensive bookings and reluctantly goes with the Castanets, who are decidedly on the cheesy (and cheap) side. Scenes from their standard nightclub act follow, including a raucous male "wet underwear" contest, and comedy music bits include a patter song I've Been Everywhere, composed almost entirely of tongue-twisting Australian place names. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- 1986
- R
A dramatic story about a houseful of youth with no apparent purpose in life, this film features pounding rock music and attitude problems galore. The main setting is a rundown dwelling in an impoverished district near Melbourne, Australia, where conversations ebb, flow, and overlap much like the lives of the people who live there. Strangers also wander in and out of the premises as life continues, for some, more through an indestructible momentum than any internal driving force. Some of the young people go to school, others do nothing but party, and some take drugs. The police tolerate the residents of the house, even when they burn their television set. Sam (Michael Hutchence) and Anna (Saskia Post) are one of the couples that form among the residents, a mismatched pair whose actions lead to tragedy for Anna and an indictment against hard drugs. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Hutchence, Saskia Post, (more)
