This is a bizarre movie. On one hand the acting is excellent and cinematography superb. The unusual choice of black and white works a treat in this outback setting with some wonderful photographic composition to set the mood.
Sadly, this is where the commendations end, for as the title suggests, the audience is left in limbo. A threadbare story basically amounts to a born again cop (Simon Baker) investigating a cold case murder of an indigenous child that with the passage of time proves unsolvable.
For reasons unexplained Baker's character is also a funtioning heroin addict who looks like Walter White. No meaningful evidence is found and everyone is reluctant to speak. There's no flashbacks to provide any clues or build any emotional attachment to the poor girl and what became of her. Notwithstanding, like Coober Pedy, a lot has probably occurred out of view, under the surface.
Therefore the pacing is achingly slow and infuriatingly no payoff is forthcoming. Ambiguity is fine, but not so much when the narrative is as sparse as the desert landscape. Ultimately this movie is one giant tease, my generous rating based solely on what was rendered from the writer's slender morsels.
Sadly, this is where the commendations end, for as the title suggests, the audience is left in limbo. A threadbare story basically amounts to a born again cop (Simon Baker) investigating a cold case murder of an indigenous child that with the passage of time proves unsolvable.
For reasons unexplained Baker's character is also a funtioning heroin addict who looks like Walter White. No meaningful evidence is found and everyone is reluctant to speak. There's no flashbacks to provide any clues or build any emotional attachment to the poor girl and what became of her. Notwithstanding, like Coober Pedy, a lot has probably occurred out of view, under the surface.
Therefore the pacing is achingly slow and infuriatingly no payoff is forthcoming. Ambiguity is fine, but not so much when the narrative is as sparse as the desert landscape. Ultimately this movie is one giant tease, my generous rating based solely on what was rendered from the writer's slender morsels.