Stunning Australian film that garnered much controversy on its initial release. It suffered mass walk outs on its screening at Cannes and was unable to find a distributor, yet also won a swag of AFIs and enjoyed a healthy run in the cinemas.
What upset the Frenchies so much? Bliss is about a middle aged man, Harry Joy (Barry Otto, in the role that made him a kind-of star) who recovers from a heart attack to find his wife (Lynette Curran) unfaithful, his son (Miles Buchanan) a drug dealer, and his daughter (Gia Carides) a coke addict who performs sexual favours on the son in exchange for drugs. Harry freaks out for a bit but subsequently finds happiness in the arms of a sexy young hippy (Helen Jones).
While this synopsis makes the film sound like something you would see at the STC starring Gary MacDonald, you’re not reckoning with the brilliance of its execution. The acting is terrific (particularly Buchanan), the script (by Peter Carey and director Ray Lawrence based on Carey’s book), is consistently inventive and imaginative, the visual images dazzling, the emotional pull of the film powerful. Many memorable scenes: the opening sequence of the woman on the boat, an elephant sitting on a car, cockroaches bursting from a chest, fish bursting from… well, see it to find out. The second half is a little repetitive (the scenes at the hospital), but the film recovers for a strong finale. Why did it take Lawrence 15 years to make another film?
The first-rate DVD package including commentary from Lawrence and producer Tony Buckley and Lawrence’s (much shorter) directors cut. Roadshow again throw in a short film from AFTRS instead of something more appropriate, like some of Lawrence’s ads.
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