Truly Dreadful Film

Intense, gripping, stylish and poignant

Fantastic!

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

Having read the previous comments, I wondered if I'd been watching the same film. There may have been changes for the American release, since I don't recall voice-overs for the Australian version (maybe Americans need things spelled out. Comes from watching too much Hollywood.) This is _not_ Hollywood. It's small in scope, with budget to match, and it runs at a tender pace. If you want something fast, get fast food. If you want something absorbing and thoughtful, watch this.Having said that, my perspective was strangely shifted as I watched it. (I can't recall another film that has done this to me so well.) I thought I was watching a "small town boy makes good" film, but after a while it became obvious it was about a bloke who _couldn't_ make good with his relationships - and didn't realise it. Everyone was being nice to him, and he didn't realise he was slapping them in the face.Maybe the other commenters here were waiting for something to happen, then didn't find anything. But the happening is in the _journey_, and speaks to our ability to grow, or not.Finally, as vindication, I'd note that this film garnered a slew of Australian Film Industry Awards. And the industry here is not small or undiscriminating.In contrast to the nay-sayers, I'll say this is one of the best Australian films of the past 10 years. There's heaps of heart in this film. Watch it with your eyes open.

Good movie but not the sort of movie that stands up to a second viewing.I saw this movie when it was first released theatrically in Australia and this is one of those movies that comes across much better on the big screen than it does on the small screen. This is not one that is worth owning on DVD/Video, but definitely worth renting if purely for its worth as an accurate depiction of lower middle class rural australia, and the typical dysfunctions that occur in Australian family life.

In my family people who don't face up to their responsibilities, who leave suddenly when confronted, are known as bolters. My Aunt Mary, an extreme eccentric, was a bolter. A heart breaker and also a sudden breaker of leases, she'd turn up 500 miles away in another job if some man was getting too keen. She developed doin' the bolt into an art form. She managed that for 70 years!Eddie (Ben Mendelsohn) in Mullet is a bolter. He's about thirty and has unexpectedly turned up in his small town. We find that he'd broken at least two hearts by leaving three years before and it seems that he's not too interested in changing his ways. Eddie, known as Mullet, is selfish and spoilt but sufficiently self reliant to eak a living catching mullet in the local creeks while living alone in a clapped out caravan. He used to be a local rugby league star, destined for the big time in Sydney. But again he bolted.Mullet is set in a small coastal town south of Sydney. The locals aren't particularly happy even if the town looks very pretty. Mullet is scenic.His parents (Kris McQuade and Tony Barry) are malcontents who have formed an alliance based on not talking directly to each other. His brother (Andrew S. Gilbert) is a local cop and other friends include Tully (Suzie Porter) and Kay (Belinda McClory). Mullet's sister is played very nicely by Peta Brady. In fact all of the performances are very good, its just a shame that they weren't able to grace a more worthy script.Mullet is the third film from director David Caesar after Greenkeeping and Idiot Box. It's only about 90 minutes long but still seems to be padded by a profusion of meaningless set up shots that lead nowhere and a plot with far too little happening.It's all well and good to establish a scene or a mood with panning shots but lit buildings and front yards only retain a limited appeal. Mullet does have a terrifically moody sound track from Paul Healy.But it's as if the scriptwriter for Mullet had done the bolt, which is a little strange because David Caesar also wrote this muddy little piece.3 Underwritten Flys out of 5.

This is David Caesar's best movie (some of you may say that is not difficult). A realistic tale of life in a small country town in Australia. The script is tightly written, and catches the flavour of situation. The acting is good - Andrew S Gilbert is a stand out in his understated portrayal of the older brother.