CibbuanoNewcastle
November 10th 2008 00:41
NEWCASTLE
By Cheryl J
Newcastle is an Australian film and the feature length directorial debut by director Dan Castle, set in the NSW industrial town of - you guessed it - Newcastle. Oddly enough, Castle himself grew up in a town called New Castle in Delaware on the east coast of the United States.
The story is not so much a coming of age film but, ultimately, one of family dynamics, friendships and finding yourself and your own potential.
Jesse is a young surfer constantly living in the shadow of his bitter older brother, a has-been who was a champion in the big leagues and now a train-wreck who wreaks havoc on all around him. The expectation of him being on the same level as his brother pervades every part of Jesse’s life. But it seems the person who has the highest expectation is Jesse himself.
All of Jesse’s relationships, with his parents, his friends and especially that of his twin brother are constantly tainted by the pressure of living up to something he may not be able to achieve. This is all set against a backdrop of sand, surf and the ever present working class scenery of the tankers in Newcastle’s seas.
The film mostly revolves around a testosterone laden weekend party trip that shows lots of skin, the rushing hormones of teens and the alcohol fuelled hijinks which are a part of growing up. The weekend of fun takes a tragic twist which is the catalyst for Jesse discovering that you cannot live another’s dreams – you have to discover your own and be true to who you are.
Lachlan Buchanan who plays Jesse has quite a history in theatre and a few television roles to his credit but this was his first feature film and it shows. Although he does bring a naiveté to the film that is necessary he also lacks the emotional depth to pull off such a complex character. I found myself far more drawn to the side stories of the other characters, in particular his twin brother Fergus (Xavier Samuel) with his inability to ‘fit’ with the surfer crowd due to his homosexuality, his almost Goth-like persona and his very obvious crush on one of his brother’s friends. Even through endless teasing you are left with the impression that he doesn’t fit more because his brothers never allowed him to, not because he is disliked. His burgeoning sexuality is handled with care, showing his confusion, his sense of difference and was beautifully played out against the stereotypical macho surfer dude.
The older bitter and twisted brother Victor (Reshad Strik) showed the rivalry and jealousy of one that had it and lost it and could not bear that he was no longer on top. He was the embodiment of a drunken loser and how his bitterness had lost him everything. There are only the briefest of moments where you see the humanity of the character and I feel just a few more minutes fleshing him out would have made a world of difference.
The beautiful blue sky and roiling ocean for the fun surfing and party shots and dark gathering storm clouds when things began to unravel all seemed a little too contrived. I found the constant shots of the tankers to be superfluous - Newcastle and this family are both working class, we got that - and the overly done shots of the moon gave a sense of trying too hard to make it a gritty drama. Don’t get me wrong some of the dramatic scenes had all of the necessary tension and emotion but gritty this was not.
The nudity, skinny dipping and the almost obligatory masturbation scene are made purely for teen audiences which is fine because this is the demographic the film is definitely aiming for.
Not a bad directorial debut, the movie was enjoyable with great cinematography from Richard Michalak, some wonderful surfing that took me back to my teen years living on the Central Coast, lots of pretty boys and girls and a few truly moving moments but all in all it played a little like an extended version of an Australian soap opera. To me, it was like a nice day at the beach; hot young bods with surf and sand but ultimately forgettable.
See it if surf is your thing as the surfing scenes are all pretty damn good and if you like to watch young buff bodies strutting their stuff.
Director: Dan Castle
Producer: Naomi Wenck
Cinematographer: Richard Michalak
Classification: M
Running time: 107 minutes
Starring: Lachlan Buchanan, Xavier Samuel, Reshad Strik, Anthony Hayes, Shane Jacobson, Barry Otto, Joy Smithers, Gigi Edgley, Ben Milliken, Israel Cannan, Debra Ades, Rebecca Breeds and Jaymes Triglone.
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Comment by Johnny Come Lately
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The only thing found weird was Andrew Johns being a judge at the contest. WTF? OK, Mark Richards and Layne Beachley are surfers but Andrew Johns?
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i was wondering how this film rated compared to Blackrock or Bootmen, our other Newy inspired movies
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Comment by Cheryl J
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Hi Johnny, the boobs were distracting and enormous! that scene was very Baywatch and my friend and I remarked on the same thing at the time.I just had to look up who Andrew Johns was and yes indeedy it is weird that they chose a footballer for a surfing competition judge.
Heya Janet, it certainly wasn't a bad movie and pretty good by Australian standards and they did well on a low buget. The multiple stories are pretty engaging and I did enjoy the film but it wasn't anything special. I would say it would be a good DVD film but if you're a surfing fan you may want to watch the action on the big screen, it's nicely done.
Hello there Morgan, I'm sure it would bring back many memories for you! I had a rush of memories hit me from my teen years, much of which was spent on the beach. I haven't actually seen Blackrock (slack I know) but I liked Bootmen and don't think this was quite on par with it. You would love the gay storyline as it is done with great sensitivity and the actor Xavier Samuel kind of stole the show for me. I'd recommend you see it as I think you'd like it.
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