September (2007)

September is a multi dimensional story, on one level, its about social change, human rights, injustice and politics. The other level is the story of friendship, growing up, first love, being youthful and powerful yet seemingly powerless. It is 1968 and the main characters Ed and Paddy are a reincarnation of there fathers, where one is white and one is black, one has privilege and the other is destined to servitude. Ed is young and to spite his youthful aspirations he is already taking his place in the social structure as the privileged white man, and treats his life long friend accordingly. Paddy is black, and realizing more everyday that his life long friendship is not what it had seemed. Both boys like to box and spar in a make shift ring they build together. For Ed it is childhood fun, for Paddy it becomes an opportunity to escape the preordained life of an unpaid aboriginal laborer. There is substance to the boys friendship that in the end prevails and is symbolic of the subtle social changes of the time. What made this movie so memorable for me was the huge scope of the subject, told in the most human way.

I've noticed that with Australian movies a good review gets a favorable reaction from the locals, but a critical one brings the knives out. Now, I quite liked this movie, but it's not a great one. It's a very simple story about two 16 year old boys growing up in country WA in the year 1968. One is white, the son of a struggling wheat farmer (on a property ironically called "Alaska") and the other black, whose father works on the property for nothing but food and housing. Their close friendship and their families' relationship are disturbed by the arrival of a girl next door and a government edict requiring farmers to pay their aboriginal employees wages. This turned out to be a disaster in most areas as the aboriginals were just turfed off the properties.Although the acting is exquisite, the main roles are not characters but archetypes. There is little to make them individuals. The dialogue is very sparse, which is understandable, since they are Aussie country types, but also rather lacking in content. Very little the characters say advances or explains the story. I was reminded of Ivan Sen's "Beneath the Clouds", where the two main characters, black and white, were on the road and not talking much, but they were communicating. Here, no-one seems to listen to anyone else. There is conflict, but not much of a resolution. The inequality of black and white is a dominant theme but there is not much context. Political correctness overwhelms explanation, and there is little room for entertainment.The film is lovingly shot, though central west NSW near Harden stood in for the WA wheat belt. I wondered what all the wheat was doing near harvest in August, but it seems Australian wheat is planted in the autumn to catch the winter rains and harvested in the spring. I also wondered about those hard-up WA wheat farmers - wheat prices in 1968 were double those of today, in real terms - but heck, this ain't history.Almost no-one is going to see this movie (I had a free ticket), but that is not going to stop film commissions funding similar ventures. Fortunately the commissions don't have much money. The good thing about this kind of picture is that it does allow new talent to emerge. Though his skills as a scriptwriter might be questioned, Peter Carstairs has done well as a first time director and moves the story along at a good pace. His two 16 year old principals, Xavier Samuel and Clarence John Ryan were stunning. The only name actor in the cast, Sibilla Budd, was embarrassingly bad as a schoolteacher, but I think the script contributed to this. Well, guess I'll now cop abuse from the wombat nationalists, but so be it. No-one erects statues to critics.

This is a story about two families, one a white generational wheat farmer and the other the aboriginal family indentured to the farm who are not paid but are given food and lodging and nothing else. They live 40 miles from town and 2 miles from the nearest neighbour. Dialogue is minimal as it would be in these circumstances with them being simple, quiet people.The two boys mirror their father, who mirrored theirs so we know what is the destiny of the boys as it is mapped out for them. The change is the granting of rights to the aboriginals such as a right to a salary. This has consequences to both families.The film reflects the speed of life in the beautifully shot countryside, yes very little happens but the small bits are tiny bright gems.I'm sorry they tried to put a little of the "coming of age" bit as it felt over-sentimentalised as these boys would have been quite worldly in things such as boxing, driving etc

I just finished screening "September" at the Toronto International Film Festival and I was more than impressed with this feature. The film is perfectly paced, has a meaningful plot and flawless acting. A well written screenplay builds a beautiful story about racial differences between friends, old and young, and how color and class can interfere with and shape human bonds and heart-felt relationships. This is a truly unique and beautiful Australian film with a cross-cultural theme and emotional resonance, not to mention the beautiful cinematography of a very isolated and serene part of Australia. I would definitely recommend this film and also see it again.