David stratton curates sydney film festival retrospective of films from aussie. Ken sherry arrives from the hustle of brisbane to run the station. The mid1900s had a slow start for australian film, although the first academy award was won for an australian film, kokoda front linethe industry picked back up during the 1970s with one of the first internationally released films, picnic at hanging rock, and with the success of the series of mad max franchise films. The film is very sensual and has an unusual plot that makes you question. Barretts script for south solitary was awarded multiple prizes, including the queensland premiers prize and the. Suffice to say, love serenade is the story of two smalltown australian sisters in pursuit of the affections of a bigcity dj recently arrived in town. Shirleys first film, love serenade won the camera dor best first feature at cannes film festival in 1996. There are not many characters in love serenade r, which is set in a fictitious, small town called sunray, located on the murray river. She has written and directed two other feature films walk the talk 2000 and south solitary 2010. Now, im hard to please when it comes to comedies, so what makes love serenade so much fun to watch. Love serenade iffr international film festival rotterdam. A far cry from the kind of brash, bold aussie film that occasionally clicks at cannes, serenade is comparable to campions first feature, sweetie, with its sadfunny approach to its two female characters.
Twentysixyearold vickiann hurley rebecca frith single. Love serenade is one of the most underrated australian films of 1990s. Not long after its release, film scholar lisa french wrote an article for metro magazine entitled, love serenade. There is the suggestion that love serenade will be some kind of a love triangle, with both sisters competing for the disc jockeys attentionbut something about ken sherrys implacable, insolent, lazy personality suggests that he has secrets we have not even remotely guessed. The first thing that struck me on seeing love serenade 1996 again on the big screen after all these years was.
Miranda otto and george shevtsov in love serenade 1996 shirley barrett and. Love serenade by australian filmmaker shirley barrett ushers into theatrical distribution next month by miramax. Love serenade, an australian film by shirley barrett stars george shevtsov as ken sherry, a recently divorced for the third time disc jockey from brisbane who comes to work in the little australian town of sunray on the murray river. One of the finest aspects of love serenade is the portrayal of the australian smalltown. With miranda otto, rebecca frith, george shevtsov, john alansu. Theyre given a muchneeded thrill, however, when george shevtsov, an eccentric, hedonistic dj, moves next door and sleepwalks through affairs with. Australian director shirley barretts debut film, love serenade, is many things a black comedy, a comingofage story, a surrealistic fable. Love serenade originally screened at acmi in 2007 and returns as part of our 10th anniversary celebration of australian perspectives. Take it all off baby, take it all off the australian. Love serenade a far cry from the kind of brash, bold aussie film that occasionallyclicks at cannes, serenade is comparable to campions first. The characters that inhabit the continent are mere specks of life before the enormity that is its nature, one bound, at any point in time, to swallow them up. Australian film the 10 best australian films of 2016. Love serenade is produced by jan chapman, who also produced jane campions films. Love serenade is a wickedly funny 1996 australian feature film directed by shirley barrett.
Cant vouch of the quality of the films but this is as good a list of what australian. One of my absolute all time favourite australian films. As writerdirector, she has crafted a film that is best appreciated by true aficionados of the art form. Vickiann hurley rebecca frith and her younger sister dimity miranda otto are both feeling stagnant in the tiny outback town of sunray, and they welcome the distraction provided by the arrival of ken sherry george shevtsov, a formerly popular radio personality. Film synopsis two sisters will do anything to hook the right man. Winner of the camera dor at the 1996 cannes film festival, love serenade, the feature debut of australian director shirley barrett, has the kind of nasty, biting wit that juries at film festivals seem to appreciate. In the context of australian cinema, the piano is a reminder that longterm investment in talent. Film critic david stratton lists his top five australian films ahead of the release of. Australian life can seem defiantly absorbed, the defiance induced by insularity and isolation. This features a scene taken from the mirimax film, love serenade 1996 in which two sisters, vicki ann and dimity, argue the heart. At first glance, with its story of two sisters competition for slimey dj ken sherry george shevtsov, its hardly a story of. The sisters, not to mention the dj, are, of course, very quirky. In a nutshell, its that the humor comes from within the characters and situations, not from the hand of the. Shirley barrett looks back on love serenade on aso.
Barretts film shares with a film like sweetie the sadcomic and satirical. A pragmatic australian with an offbeat take on the world. The piano rewatched reexamining the erotic via sexually. Shirley barretts first film, love serenade 1995, featured one of the most memorable characters in recent australian cinema. Introverted waitress dimity miranda otto lives in the desolate australian town of sunray and has never been in a relationship. In fact, she is a film director from sydney, australia, whose first feature movie, love serenade, has made the rounds of the worlds most important festivals, winning acclaim and. The story takes place in a small australian town and things get crazy when a. The 66th sydney film festival 516 june 2019 dimity miranda otto and vicki ann rebecca frith live in the isolated township of sunray. The opening scenes of love serenade play like a definition of the kind of movie that. The script walks a difficult line, wanting to depict the limiting effects of the town on its characters, without turning them. In sunray, a backwater town on australias murray river, theres little to do but fish or listen to the local radio station. Eight questions for shirley barrett, director of love.
Love serenade was a bold and imaginative debut from shirley barrett, an attempt to get inside the loneliness of a small and stifling australian town without becoming predictable or pompous. Things start to get fishy between the dj and two sister becoming a bizarre love triangle that will have you shocked. The australian film love serenade is a truly funny movie, so much so that i actually laughed out loud frequently while i was watching. Shirley barrett born 1961 is an australian film director, screenwriter and novelist. Australian films love to create strange characters. Winner of the camera dor at the 1996 cannes film festival and nominated for 2 afi awards, love serenade features an allfemale creative team in shirley barrett writerdirector, jan chapman producer, mandy walker cinematographer, and denise haratsis editor.
Available on dvd through au sibling rivalry is at an all time high in this riotous awardwinning australian romantic. The 10 best australian films of 2016 film the guardian. End of spoiler alert the soundtrack is funky and sexy including huge hits from the 70s such as barry whites 1975 song love serenade or. Enter the sleazy and considerably fishy bgrade celebrity ken sherry, and the pyrotechnics of love, pain and the whole damn thing. Next door to him live two young sisters, vicki ann rebecca frith and dimity miranda otto hurley. The script for her film south solitary won the queensland premiers prize script 2010, the west australian premiers literary prize script 2010. Two sisters in an australian country town develop a fierce and competitive crush.
Ingrid bergman deliciously quirky australian black comedy about 2 sisters from a small country town vying for the affections of their new next door neighbor. Two sisters in an australian country town develop a fierce and competitive crush on their new neighbour, a brooding and selfcentred radio personality. This is a student film project for the colorado film school. Something strange is going on, but that doesnt stop the sisters opening the hunting season. While barrett has completed several short films and worked regularly in. You can send your own messages of love while chilling to some smooth tunes and a few drinks. Two sisters will do anything to hook the right man. Beyond beyond films limited was the international sales agent. Then there is the instinct to grow, to find things anew, to taste fruit newly available. The babadook and love serenade stones moody drama is a great exercise in building and sustaining tension. For the most part, movies tend to tell the stories of love affairs between the right people, with romance and fate being an integral part of the mix. About halfway through the film, the two sisters competing for kens. Love serenade movie tv listings and schedule tv guide. Love serenade is a calm, quiet minimasterpiece in super slomo from down under by shirley barrett, in her firstever attempt at a fulllength theatrical movie.
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