Titles curated by Paul Byrnes
260 titles - sorted alphabetically or by year prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 next
1990s (continued)
Dogwatch feature film – 1997
This film could almost pass as a 1940s Hollywood studio thriller starring Humphrey Bogart.
Doing Time for Patsy Cline feature film – 1997
In Doing Time for Patsy Cline, Ralph (Matt Day) believes at the start that he wants to be a country singer, but he’s not so sure by the end.
Road to Nhill feature film – 1997
Four lady bowlers roll their car outside a country town. Amid chaos and panicking menfolk, they save themselves.
Amy feature film – 1998
Amy has an amazing voice, once she discovers it, making this an unusual combination of sentiment, social commentary and singing.
The Boys feature film – 1998
David Wenham’s performance as the absolutely terrifying Brett Sprague, launched his career as an actor of serious power and presence.
Head On feature film – 1998
In terms of iconoclastic daring, Head On has no equal in Australian cinema. It broke so many rules, offended so many polite conventions, attacked so many silences, that it left audiences stunned and gulping for air.
In the Winter Dark feature film – 1998
There have been genre films that explored this kind of rural paranoia, but not so many that take the loneliness of the bush seriously as a cause of real mental trauma.
Praise feature film – 1998
Praise has alcohol and tobacco, acid and heroin, sex and oblivion and is like a grungy version of Last Tango in Paris.
Erskineville Kings feature film – 1999
This was Hugh Jackman’s first film role, before he had established himself as a star of musical theatre, and he gives a fine performance in a difficult role.
Looking For Alibrandi feature film – 1999
There is a lot of genuine affection between the grandmother, mother, and daughter in this film but conversations are bruising too.
Soft Fruit feature film – 1999
This comedy, drenched in grief and family conflict, would be a tragedy if it were not so funny and affectionate.
Two Hands feature film – 1999
Desperate for a swim, Jimmy (Heath Ledger) buries an envelope containing $10,000 in the sand at Bondi beach…
2000s
Chopper feature film – 2000
The killer who feels no remorse is a movie cliché, but Chopper is about a killer whose remorse is as strong as his desire to wound.
The Goddess of 1967 feature film – 2000
The Goddess of 1967 is a love story that’s made more powerful by its ambiguity and its lack of conventional storytelling.
Yolngu Boy feature film – 2000
An entirely untrained Indigenous cast are featured in Yolngu Boy, which aimed to communicate with a wide youth audience.
The Bank feature film – 2001
A story of the greed and corruption of one banker, The Bank is about the collapse of a sense of compassion in contemporary Australia.
Lantana feature film – 2001
Lantana is distinctly different to most contemporary Australian films: sparser, darker and more emotionally mysterious.
La Spagnola feature film – 2001
The men here are little better than beasts, and into sex without responsibility; the women are crafty, creative and capable of malice.
Mullet feature film – 2001
Mullet is about how people behave and about how men don’t talk and women do.
Australian Rules feature film – 2002
This drama, with its racism theme, in turn sparked very heated debate about white filmmakers telling stories with Indigenous content.
Black and White feature film – 2002
The film presents both the defence’s and the prosecution’s version of what might have happened in the controversial Max Stuart case, so that there is no easy path to the truth.
Crackerjack feature film – 2002
An overgrown boy from a spoiled generation, becomes a man through fraternising with an older, wiser — and very daggy — generation.
Dirty Deeds feature film – 2002
A photograph from the 1960s of a prominent Sydney criminal pig-shooting with two American mafiosi helped inspire this drama.
The Hard Word feature film – 2002
The Hard Word is both a comical crime fable and a story of brotherly love, an unusual mix of elements.
Rabbit-Proof Fence feature film – 2002
For many white Australians, this popular film was the first direct emotional experience of what it meant to be one of the 'stolen generations’.
The Tracker feature film – 2002
A series of paintings by South Australian artist Peter Coad are used throughout The Tracker in place of visual depictions of violence.
Gettin’ Square feature film – 2003
David Wenham’s performance as a hopeless junkie, especially when he bamboozles everyone in court, is a comic tour-de-force.
Japanese Story feature film – 2003
An unexpected plot development in the middle of Japanese Story left audiences stunned and disbelieving — and occasionally hostile.
Oyster Farmer feature film – 2004
Writer-director Anna Reeves spent four years immersed in the culture of the beautiful Hawkesbury River area before making this drama.
Somersault feature film – 2004
Abbie Cornish was 21 years old when this film was made and the integrity and vulnerability of her performance is astonishing.
Tom White feature film – 2004
Colin Friels’s performance in the title role is one of the best of his career, and it is a key factor behind the film’s artistic success.
Deck Dogz feature film – 2005
Three teenage friends cross Sydney by skateboard to reach the Beachbowl skater competition, chased by two drug dealers and the police.
Jewboy short feature – 2005
Jewboy was well received locally and internationally, screening at the Cannes Film Festival and winning three AFI awards.
Little Fish feature film – 2005
In the climax of Little Fish Cate Blanchett convinces a man with a gun that he has a choice about what to do. There’s never really been a scene like it in another Australian film, because guns, once drawn, tend to get used. It’s a powerful message for young viewers used to violent resolutions to complex problems.
Look Both Ways feature film – 2005
Rather than having just one viewpoint, Sarah Watt’s hit debut explores the emotions of six major characters, all connected by a tragedy.
Three Dollars feature film – 2005
Australians have decided to live in an economy and not a society’, were the words on a banner that partly inspired this film.
Wolf Creek feature film – 2005
There have been many outback killers in Australian cinema, but Mick Taylor is the most distinctive — and likeable.
The Bet feature film – 2006
This tale of corruption and high finance is the first feature directed by Mark Lee, who starred in the iconic film Gallipoli.
The Book of Revelation feature film – 2006
The Book of Revelation is based on a simple, powerful idea: most films about rape are about women as victims of men, so reversing that idea allows men to experience the trauma of violation.
Candy feature film – 2006
Candy is a beautifully controlled film with an intense sensuality preceding an equally intense descent into grief and regret.
Footy Legends feature film – 2006
Anh Do, best known as a stand-up comedian, gives a heartbreakingly real performance as a man of limited education trying to keep his family together, and get back into the economic mainstream.
Happy Feet feature film – 2006
Filmmakers spent two months in Antarctica photographing landscapes and fauna to make this animated film look photoreal.
Jindabyne feature film – 2006
Jindabyne is based on a 20-year-old short story by American Raymond Carver, but it’s been so well adapted to the Australian milieu that it feels home-grown.
Kenny feature film – 2006
Audiences loved Kenny because his calm response to adversity made him a heroic figure, though he’d never see himself like that.
Razzle Dazzle: A Journey into Dance feature film – 2006
There are 350,000 young dancers in Australia and the film shows how hard they work — and how much more sensible they are than adults.
Suburban Mayhem feature film – 2006
Katrina, played astonishingly well by Emily Barclay, controls every man in her small kingdom with an overpowering sexuality.
Ten Canoes feature film – 2006
The jumping-off point for Ten Canoes was a 1930s photo of Indigenous people taken by anthropologist Donald Thomson.
The Black Balloon feature film – 2007
The Black Balloon is partly a coming-of-age movie, but the presence in the family of an autistic brother like Charlie prevents it from becoming conventional or predictable.
Clubland feature film – 2007
Clubland explores that time when a young man discovers sex and has to sever the relationship he has with his mother.
