THE curse with Australian cinema and film production is that often the movies can be very hit-or-miss.
It is worth wondering what we need in our film industry to start to compete with the types of blockbusters that come out of the US and England.
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Whether it is bigger budgets, different actors, imported actors, more original scripts or alternative directors, the Aussie film market needs an injection of something. One thing is certain – it is very rare that Aussie flicks lack heart and charm. I think it has something to do with our personality as a nation. Rarely do we get overly upset, we go with the flow and are happy to have a laugh and a drink with anyone.
Have you seen Red Dog? Post a website comment and share your thoughts on the movie. Classic Australian films that demonstrate our accepting and fun personality include The Castle, Strictly Ballroom, Crackerjack and now Red Dog. Red Dog showcases that sort of charm and personality in spades.
Ba sed on a true story as well as a book by Louis de Bernières, it tells the tales of a popular kelpie who was embraced by a mining community in regional Western Australia. So much so that he ended up a member of the union and local sports clubs.
Ordinarily, there is a section of a review where we look at the talent of the actors and how they fit with the rest of the film. But Red Dog isn’t about the actors or their characters: it is about one dog.
Sure, Josh Lucas (Sweet Home Alabama), Rachel Taylor (Summer Coda), Noah Taylor (Almost Famous) and Luke Ford (The Black Balloon) all do a splendid job, as do the rest of the extensive supporting cast, but they don’t compare to Koko as Red Dog.
Plucked from obscurity, Koko was bred in Dunolly and trained in Melbourne at age six. He now lives in Western Australia with the film’s director Kriv Stenders. The talent Koko has is not about tricks but about facial expression.