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'Australia': Four reasons to love the embattled epic
Dec 8, 2008, 07:24 AM | by Jami Lundborg

It's gotten a mixed response from critics. It plummeted 53 percent at the U.S. box office this weekend to earn a meager $7 million. It's even struggling to draw viewers in the country from which its two stars, director, and subject matter all hail. And yet, in spite of the dark cloud that's following Australia, the latest directorial effort from Baz Luhrmann, I'm not ashamed to say I thoroughly enjoyed the one-time Oscar hopeful. And for those of you who might accuse me of being blinded by 165 minutes of certified Hugh Jackman hotness, I present four other reasons (beware: some spoilers included) why I loved the film:

1. Australia looks and feels like a storybook brought to life: As you'd expect from a Luhrmann production, nothing about this film reflects the drabness of everyday life. From the richly beautiful backdrops (the wharf in particular) to the moments of magical realism (Nullah stopping the stampede), the film overcomes its slightly cliché storyline with undeniable artistic splendor.

2. Brandon Walters is completely winning as Nullah: Seriously, if this little boy's performance doesn't melt your heart, then you might want to schedule an EKG and make sure you actually have one. Those big brown saucers of his! The way he delivers his "I sing you to me" line! Come on, even if you're an Australia hater you gotta give me this one...

3. Jackman finally gets a chance to flex something other than his muscles: On top of his more, um, aesthetic gifts, Jackman is an undeniably watchable actor whose talents are often wasted in blah films (see: Someone Like You, Van Helsing). Yet in Australia, the final scene in The Territory (a bar in Darwin) boasts a beautiful performance by the Aussie. There are plenty of grand, emotional moments in the movie, but, for me, Jackman's reaction to the barman's refusal to serve his black friend was the most affecting of all.

(3.5. Okay, yeah, I'll admit it: Jackman has never looked hotter.)

4. Australia is a love letter to classic cinematic romances: They may not make 'em like they used to, but with this film, Lurhmann pays loving tribute to the sweeping epics of the past. And even if he doesn't deliver a film with the grace and depth of, say, Gone with the Wind, I can't help but admire his ambition.

So PopWatchers, who's with me on this one? Did you find reasons to love Australia, or does the film deserve its bad buzz? Spread the love (or the hate) for the Jackman-Nicole Kidman starrer in the comments section below.

icelemt38 wrote:

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Oh and if anyone wants to read something to make them feel better and realize how much people are loving this movie, read the comments under the EW article that Pat posted!!!

Australia Comes To London Jackman! Kidman! Kangaroos!

A corner of London's West End was claimed for Oz last night, as Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman and director Baz Luhrmann graced the red carpet for the premiere of romantic epic Australia. Fans showed up in huge numbers despite temperatures that could generously be described as sub-arctic, and were treated to a swirl of line-dancing cattle drovers, parasols, jazz tunes and flaming torches that gave the evening a touch of Lurhmann-esque flamboyance. Set in the Northern Territories on the eve of the Second World War, Australia tells the story of Kidman's English aristocrat and Jackman's rugged drover who embark on an cattle drive across the red continent. It's the most expensive Australian film ever made and possibly the most ambitious, imbued with the spirit of Gone With The Wind, Out Of Africa and Red River - Luhrmann was happy to admit to those influences, adding Giant and Casablanca to the list. "Any of those films where you have a sweeping romantic epic, where you have broad comedy, romance, action and drama, all in the one big banquet of cinema, that's where the inspiration came from." When Empire asked Luhrmann about a return to his Alexander the Great project and the third part of his planned historical trilogy, the director was more circumspect, reflecting on Australia's gruelling shoot. "I will go on to do those but right now I have find myself again. Work is about giving and giving and giving, and I have to find my own centre again - I have to go walkabout." Kidman meanwhile looked every inch the matinee idol, emerging from a black Mercedes before strolling the red carpet in a climate-defying white dress. She stopped to chat enthusiastically about her latest project, Nine, Rob Marshall's first musical since 2002 jazzathon Chicago. Nine looks like being a similarly swinging affair, riffing on the Fellini masterpiece 8½ (or 8.5 for decimal lovers) and featuring Daniel Day-Lewis' musical debut. If the words 'Pierce' and 'Brosnan' pop into your head, apparently it's safe to banish them. "Daniel has never done a musical before, but he's an extraordinary actor and I think people will be astounded by how good he is." Kidman stars alongside a stellar cast of actresses, including Sophia Loren, Judi Dench and Penélope Cruz. "It's just an amazing group of women, and we all get on so well." With fellow cast members and Elton John basking in the warmth inside, the unreasonably tanned and improbably handsome Hugh Jackman took time to describe the Outback shoot on Australia. "We were together for almost a year, living in tents in the middle of the country, so we were like a family. One of the places we stayed had one room, a pool table and a bar, so everybody gets to know each other very well." Newly-crowned The World's Sexiest Man™, Jackman joked that he'd made a sworn enemy of the title's former holder. "George Clooney rings me all the time in the middle of the night, but he's a drinker and I assume he's drunk. Still, I think it's a little out of line. Right now I don't feel particularly sexy, it's freezing!" And with that, the Antipodeans swept into the cinema before frostbite took too firm a hold. For the rest of us, Australia comes out on Boxing Day, so it's just the thing to watch while digesting all that turkey. Phil de Semlyen