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Good story, Not enough for a whole film

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

I enjoyed this Australian film starring the always-terrific John Hurt. It seemed like a more realistic portrait of a modern family than what you see in a majority of Hollywood films today. Lily Bell-Tindley plays Lou and is definitely a young actress to watch. Wonderful character portrayal and her eyes tell the story. Her intensity and talent reminds me of a current actress like Chloe Grace Moretz. This DVD will be coming to the United States on July 19, 2011 from Monarch Home Entertainment. Although the story takes place in Australian cane country, I believe the family situation is very relatable to American audiences. The subject matter deals with a family member with Alzheimers, but is not a completely depressing journey and ends well. Kudos to John Hurt for another fine performance. I recommend this film.

This should never have been made. Even with the great John Hurt, it's reported 3 & half million budget (which would need box office returns in the area of 10:1 to break even) is irrecoverable. Creating more burnt investors and distributors who'll hesitate to touch an Australian film yet again...Grim little "slice of life" film that even manages to flatten the lush landscape of Murwullinbah. OK performances and a script that feels like it's been put through the funding body wringer - no surprises, predictable events and story arc etc.Reviewed as "Worthy" - i.e kiss of death. Should have been on TV .

I think the film had a reasonably balanced set of messages with enough curly tidbits to take a few elements away and dissect over a coffee or two with friends. I found the portrayal of a struggling family group seemed very plausible and I especially loved the imagery and memories of a coastal sugar-cane town captured for the backdrop. In a couple of the scenes I'm not entirely convinced by Ms Barclay's performance as Lou's mother, but the rather poignant scene of the 4 "young" girls together on the beach towards the ending gels with one of the aspects that all of them (including Rhia) are still growing up together. Some nicely placed humour underpins parts of the character development and overall it seems a good plate of mind-food with hooks for many embattled parents. I agree with another reviewer that John Hurt's performance was great, he didn't overdo the illness symptoms to make Doyle too cheesy to be believed, and the audience at my session delighted in many of the childhood antics portrayed by the younger actors. Definitely good work by Lily-Bell Tindley as the memorable Lou.

This is one very 'different' film. The pre-publicity prepares one for a tough hour-and-a-bit. It starts slow, and one wonders whether the story can be told in the short time left. We have a family, short of a dad, living on the border of Queensland and New South Wales. It's sugarcane country, backed by Mount Warning, the conspicuous mountain named by James Cook in 1770. The family is poor economically, but strong in spirit. We are introduced to the three girls, eldest 12, early in a line-up. This line-up is repeated from time to time and at the finish of the film. The girls are obedient, which makes them, perhaps, less than normal. But mother preserves the family's functionality with discipline against great odds. The odds seem greatest when the family is stuck with the grandfather, suffering with Alzheimers. It is obvious that Lou, the eldest girl, is to be the leader in the drama, and Doyle, the declining elder, is her foil. Does this work? Well, there's an old stage rule: never appear with children or dogs. The children win hands down with the mother appearing to be helpless. Doyle finishes up happy, and Lou, resilient in her youth, recovers from her disappointment. The cinematography is lovely, with rock-steady camera work, but not relying too heavily on the magnificent landscape of the Tweed Valley. Yes, a filmmaker can tell a story in under an hour-and-a-half!