Full Movie Reviews
Rating of
2/4
This One Can Stay Outback
Freddie - wrote on 11/06/2009
This movie was a disappointed. The trailer misleads you into believing that you are going to witness an epic love story involving an English aristocrat and an Australian stock-man in WWII Australia. Instead, it's a long story about cattle and unmeaningful and awkward relationships. I will start off by saying that the acting was solid. I would not expect anything less from Kidman and Jackman, because they are brilliant. However, there was really no chemistry between any of the characters. I wasn't really moved when the little boy's mother died. I barely cared when Kidman and Jackman had a falling out. The most interesting character was King George, and I don't mean that disparagingly. He was such a strong character for having such a small role. I was captivated whenever he was on the …
Rating of
2.5/4
Epic wait
BryanFury - wrote on 01/28/2009
I really thought that this movie was about how to move massive quantities of cattle in the Australian outback. It would have been nice though if the first two hours was removed, then I wouldn't have had to endure that very long cattle ranching lesson. There's no doubt this movie looks great from a distance but that's just about it. The lack of substance the first two hours alone can make one so enormously exhausted waiting for something to happen. I also believed that the lack of chemistry between the lead actors was one of the major flaws in this supposed epic. One other thing I’d like to point out was the consistent panning of random scenes was really annoying. Overall the last thirty minutes would be the one to watch out for, though I’m not so sure everyone can stay that long for …
Rating of
3/4
Down under (and out)
kcvidkid - wrote on 12/16/2008
Although I wanted very much to see Baz Luhrmann's latest, I was afraid that it might stray too far from his signature style. I mean, really, what is "Romeo + Juliet" or "Moulin Rouge" without its unique visual and musical approach?
"Australia" starts out quirky enough; Luhrmann's fingerprint is obvious. And it is gorgeous throughout. But at some point it strays by becoming too "ordinary".
I was even squirming in my seat until the cattle drive (a very exciting sequence), after which point it felt like the movie was over, even though it didn't seem like enough time had passed. Sure enough, the epic was only half way through. And I'm not sure the final climax was as good as this first one.
Why must there always be a child (or children) to evoke sympathy for the characters …
Rating of
2/4
Australia is Amazing, this Movie is Not
Alex - wrote on 12/04/2008
I was expecting this to be the country of Australia's "Giant" which stars Bogart, Dean, and Taylor. Though I didn't give that movie a high rating I attribute it's lack of quality due to the evolution of time. Well, Australia just came out and it doesn't even stand the test of time. I was very disappointed in this flick.
The Good: The acting - both Kidman and Jackman are great as usual. The child actor is actually pretty good as well. The cinematography is amazing at times, but at others, the CGI is terrible (I think). It is a beautiful country from what I can see and really does depict what Australia could have been like (though it definitely could have been better). The story is actually OK though extremely cheesy at times. Still it is an epic movie and does and I wouldn't …
