KANGAROO ISLAND

Australia, 2024, 115 minutes, Colour.

Rebecca Breeds, Adelaide Clemens, Erik Thomson, Joel Jackson, Julie Wood, Louis Henbest, Nicholas Hope, Sally Gifford, Glenda Linscott.

Directed by Timothy David.

Kangaroo Island, South Australia, a local community, bonds, and a scenic attraction for tourists. This is a strong setting for an Australian drama, family, relationships, ambitions, betrayals, and many personal challenges. And the scenery often looks magnificent, the coast, the roads and glimpses of animals in their settings.

As a film, Kangaroo Island makes quite a strong impact, and, while the story is universal and could take place anywhere, it reminds us that Australian audiences want to see these Australian stories, characters that they can identify with, events and themes that may not be part of their family experience, but are part of families that they know.

The focus is on Lou, a telling performance by Rebecca Breeds. The film opens with her, in her 30s, Los Angeles, drained and depressed, a character in a popular TV series but the producers dissatisfied with her performance. And she has broken with her boyfriend. Her father has bought her a plane ticket home. She is hostile.

Through a series of unexpected events, she finds herself on the plane and back home. As she travels, some flashbacks begin, building up the portrait of the family, a strong bond with her sister, Freya (Adelaide Clemens), their stern father (Erik Thomson), surfers, Ben and Todd (Joel Jackson and Louis Henbest). Possible romances, Lou going to the United States, Freya marrying Ben and having a family.

With the flashbacks, the film builds up some emotional tension in all the relationships, enabling us to share in the challenges of the present, Lou and settling back home, or not, Freya becoming a devout and rather evangelical Christian, her two polite sons, marriage tensions, financial tensions, and the state of health of their father.

One of the great strengths of the screenplay, written by director Tim Piper’s wife, Sally Gifford, is that every few minutes a new angle, a new piece of information is introduced, credibly, but continually altering the audience perspectives on each of the characters and what is going on. In fact, this continues right until the sudden comic/serious moments at the end between the two sisters. The narrative is continually moving, interesting developments, quite a lot of serious dialogue, in fact, science, religion, creation, the presence and absence of God, suffering, churchgoing, illness and the question of assisted suicide, law and morality. They are well integrated into the narrative.

Kangaroo Island is a strong indication of how important local content is and how, if it is well done as here, it can make quite an impact for local audiences who can identify with the issues that they know personally or that they observe around them.

1. The title, locations, the island, the beaches and clips, the homes, shops, hospital? Atmosphere? The musical score?
2. The universal story, families, relationships, careers and ambitions, betrayals? The particular Australian feel of the film, audiences identifying with the characters, locations, characteristic Australian behaviour?
3. The impact of the screenplay, the dialogue, every few moments and added ingredients to the development of the plot, different angles, altering the audiences view of characters and situations? The impact of the humorous dialogue?
4. The significance of the serious discussions, the role of science in creation, God or not, god intervening with suffering or not, philosophy and religion? And Ben and Lou and their using God and Jesus as profanities and phrases comment?
5. The focus on Lou, in Los Angeles, her age, experience, television star, in decline, the opening, waking, her look, depression, break with a boyfriend? Her having to move? Going to the studio, her being dismissed, her reaction, in the car, stopped, the police, her talking away out, the police driving her to the airport, her not intending to fly, her father buying the ticket, the drinks with the friends, on the plane, arrival, the issue of her luggage (and the earnest search throughout the film of the final joke), away for 10 years? Her character, self-centred?
6. The family, her father, stern manner, memories of her dead mother, the bond with Freya? The flashbacks, Ben, Todd, swimming and surfing, barbecues, the attraction? Her decision to go to Los Angeles? Her pregnancy, the birth of her son, his death, Freya and the sequence of her talking to Lou, immobile, the boy’s death? Lou and the wedding, the discussion with Ben, Freya suspicious? The aftermath and Los Angeles, Freya and her visit, apprehensive, the flight?
7. Lou and her return, the reunion, Freya older, her religious conversion, the religious language, intensity, Lou being put off? The boys and their manners, the religious background and training?Aunty Rose present, steadying in the family, then, his career, his attention to Lou? Further revelations about him, Lou the pub, meeting the student, the betrayal with the phone call, Ben and his not wanting Lou to tell Freya, Lou and her reaction, the discussions with Freya, in the water, the decision for the divorce, a very good father with the boys, about husband? His reaction?
8. Lou, having nothing, the clothes, going to the shops, the discussion with Mary, the news about the Christian building on the property, blew upset, confronting Freya? The issue of the inheritance, their father’s announcement, everything to Freya, to manage the property? Lou’s reaction, the special birds and their nest, going to the councilmember to discuss it?
9. Rory, state of health, his announcement, Lou Gehrig’s disease, gradual deterioration, his decision to end his life, the buying of the tablets, in the kitchen? Lou’s reaction, sympathetic and sad? Freya’s reaction, religious, against the law? Her taking the tablets?
10. Lou, in a huff, driving, the crash, in hospital, Freya sitting with her and talking frankly? Lou actually hearing it? The clashes, their father and his annoyance, trapping them in the shed, they’re talking, some kind of reconciliation?
11. The police, the warning about assisted suicide being against the Law?
12. Rory, the decline in health, swimming and snorkelling with Lou, his hopes, his going out to swim, Lou searching for him, the news of his body being found? And juxtaposition of the finding that there was no luggage, rye black humour?
13. Todd, in the past, friendship with Ben, swimming and surfing, Lou’s return, his continued devotion to her?
14. The focal from Los Angeles, the offer of the starring role, Lou accepting, accumulation of the events, her final phone call, the anger of the agent, her staying home?
15. With their father, the two sisters, the religious discussions in the past, life after death, God? And the irony of the last conversation, Lou with a sense of God, Freya without?