Review - Snowtown (aka The Snowtown Murders)

If you haven't heard about the Snowtown killings click here.

As the film is based on the events, here is quick plot crunch -
16 year-old Jamie falls in with his mother's new boyfriend and his crowd of self-appointed neighborhood watchmen, a relationship that leads to a spree of torture and murder.
An extremely bleak film, so bleak that it is very hard to watch and this is despite the fact that the story doesn't have a lot of violence, but the heavy, depressed atmosphere settles in and sits with you throughout the film from beginning to end. You can see that the residents of this housing commission have no way out of it, they know it to, living in a haze of cigarettes, alcohol and anything else to blunt the monotony of being trapped in a dead end.
16 year old Jamie is a nice enough kid, who just wants a normal family, but won't do anything about the situation he is in, maybe because he can't or maybe because he doesn't want to. We learn very early on that Jamie and his brothers have been abused by their Mother's current boyfriend. Of course she finds out and this when John Bunting (Daniel Henshall) comes into their lives and it all gets changed from here.
First timer Lucas Pittaway (who was picked to act whilst he was at the mall with his brother!) is outstanding. He plays Jamie with the all the right nuances and for a first time actor with no training, to take on a role like this is an amazing achievement and should be applauded.
Daniel Henshall who plays the dangerous John Bunting is quite simply amazing. He looks at someone and you can never tell what is going on in his head, as he always has that same smile, and his eyes, just do not give anything away. He plays Bunting very charismatically, showing how he can be a good family man as he helps out Jamie's brothers and Mother and then turns on the darkness when it is required. Very understated but a totally menacing figure.
Justin Kurzel's direction is superb.  The film is all but drained of its colour, giving the film a very grey and gloomy look which is appropriate. I look forward to what Kurzel has in store for his next film because he has plenty talent and seems to know exactly how to shoot a film and keep the atmosphere and feeling all the way through.
Despite the amount of murders committed only one is ever seen on screen, signifying that this film isn't about Australia's most notorious serial killings. It is not a study in murder but a study in relationships. Quite easily this film could have tipped over into a Wolf Creek in the suburbs style story but it is played with great restraint, for the better.
If you are looking for a gorefest this film isn't it.
If you are looking for one the best Australian films to come out in the past ten years, then this is the film. Difficult to watch but an amazing film that deserves international recognition on a large scale.