it is finally so absorbing because it plays like a lyrical road odyssey that’s also a detective story.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

I really didn't expect to like this movie. I've seen quite a few surfer flicks and while the ocean footage is always breathtaking, the story lines tend to be superficial at best. Still, I was interested enough in the synopsis to give it a try and I'm glad that I did.The story is about Jesse, a young surfer with dreams of making it big. He faces some challenges, though, in the form of his older brother's legacy(and subsequent failure)/ aggressive jealousy and his own self-sabotaging ways. Jesse is pretty volatile and after a while you'll start to wonder how he even has any friends because he treats everyone like crap, especially his twin brother (I only deduced that they were twins at the end based on something Fergus said. It's never stated in the movie). His friends are douches in their own right but Jesse is in a league of his own. He is quite unlikable for the majority of the film.My favourite characters would have to be the supportive grandfather, Fergus and Andy, the only nice one in Jesse's group. Although there's no real, in depth "gay romance", I still loved the moments that Fergus and Andy shared and I felt that the actors succeeded in building the idea of the "potential" the characters could have together with what little screen time they were allotted. I also liked the fact that neither was a stereotype, in the sense that Fergus, despite being "different" and constantly verbally abused, was confident and content in who he was and Andy was similarly confident and self-aware. There were no fem/masc roles, no closeted-bully/athlete situation. The way Andy revealed his interest in Fergus/men was very casual and no matter how many times his friends teased him about being nice to Fergus, suggesting that he might be gay as well, he never stopped being kind, never put up a front. After a while, I even started to suspect that they knew the attraction was mutual and didn't mind. Apart from Jesse, their teasing was really just that. Although I would have liked for there to have been a little more substance to their "relationship", it was nice to have it somewhat confirmed that they were together in the end. For as light as their storyline was, it was far better portrayed than a lot of legitimate LGBTQ films.While I did enjoy the movie overall, even with the immature little boys and their shenanigans, my main issue with the film and having Jesse as the protagonist is that he is also the antagonist and he experiences very little development. He swears, shouts, and stomps his way through 3/4 of the film and it's only when his older brother/nemesis dies, from an accident that he technically caused, does he finally change, if you can even call it that. I found that to be a rather weak way to get him to stop being an ass. The "bigger" ass had to die for the little one to realize that there's more to life than surfing and that it wouldn't kill him to be nice to people. He never apologizes to Fergus or his friends for his past actions and in the end, he gets to be in the competition that was his goal from the very beginning. Sure, he's guilt-ridden, but it still felt like a cheap resolution and that he didn't deserve the happy ending he got. I would even go so far as to say that Victor, the brother that dies, showed more humanity in his final moments than Jesse did in the entire film, even after Victor's death, because he was looking out for Fergus at the time that Jesse pulled a dumb move that killed him and almost killed Andy.This film isn't for everyone and like some of the other reviews stated, it may just be too plot-light to seem worth spending almost 2 hours watching, but for me at least it was enjoyable. Jesse aside, I genuinely liked the characters and the surfing is top-notch. I love the way the surfing styles seemed to fit the individual characters' personalities and every scene of the Australian land and seascape was just breath-taking. Once you get past the bratty teenage aspects, it's quite an enjoyable film.

This is a great film, make no mistake about it. Mr. Castle, the writer/director, uses a fusion of cinematic styles: French New Wave, Italian Neorealism, and classical Hollywood cinema, to create something truly original and consequential. His masterful integration of cinematography, editing, sound manipulation, and music track create a sense of memory, what it feels like to be a 17 year old, trying to figure out one's place in the world. Thus, I don't think this is a film for teenagers - all the chaos and noise and music and confusion and rage and elation and sexual discovery feel perfectly normal to them. It also lacks the idiotic vulgarity of most teen flicks or the reassuring confirmation of the norm that an "American Graffiti" or a John Hughes movie might offer. That's not to say that some mature teens and 20-somethings won't get the film, I just think an adult's perspective gives this film its punch.It's the little moments in which "Newcastle" absolutely soars, as when the six friends are speeding in their vehicle, radio blaring with their favorite song on, all of them joining in. It's like the real life version of that scene in "Wayne's World" when "Bohemian Rhapsody" comes on. What's captured on film is that feeling of youthful exuberance, of having your friends and being in that moment – even if ten minutes later you'll be at each other's throats for something ridiculous or mean-spirited.Stylistic choices aside, what makes this film great is the way in which its subject matter is considered. These young men are all on the verge of manhood, trying on different identities, struggling with who they are and what they will become. The naturalistic tension that arises from their competitive, testosterone-driven natures and the Bad Choices they continually make reminded me of the men who populate Scorcese's films or the troubled young men from "Saturday Night Fever." Their friendships have the potential to be lethal. As do the sibling rivalries and father-son relationships.And it's all performed with such ease and lack of pretense by the gifted, well-directed cast. I can sense this film's influence on the later, Oscar-nominated Australian film, "Animal Kingdom." So what's sad and shocking was how little critical attention this film received. One might speculate on the reasons for this: The (too?) subtle way in which it examines the issues of ambition and destiny? The unapologetic gay character who's neither a Monster, Martyr, nor Mary? Its usage of certain Hollywood elements? I don't know.What I do know is that this is a thoughtful, masterful piece of cinema that deserves to be seen.

While I've seen some over-the-top homophobic comments of two 'reviewers'. This is not a "gay-themed" film. There's a small, but bright facet that is gay-themed.Family, sibling rivalry among brothers, loss, teenage high-jinx, and a lot of surfing overshadows the fact that one brother is gay. The few PG moments of sex are between two older teen boys and their girlfriends. If seeing a male butt, (in a non-sexual context), makes you squirm, you better stay away from a ton of "regular" movies and museums too.Anyway, "Newcastle" is the story of how a tragedy enables a family to overcome nagging internal tensions. There are no villains, just victims of their own fear and disappointment. The performances are all topnotch. A minus for US viewer: occasionally the Aussie accents are a little hard to understand.

Urged by a film director I admire, I decided to attend a 9:30 screening of "Newcastle" by a director new to me, at the Los Angeles DGA theater. I left the screening in a daze. I dreamed about the film and it was the first thing I thought of this morning. I've never met any surfers in my life - although I've seen "Big Wednesday" - but I have the feeling now that I know them and I was compelled and surprised by how much we have in common. The human drama attached to the waves is what sets this film in a category all its own. Unique. Coming of age in another planet, primitive and futuristic at the same time. A stunning cast of unknowns helps the feeling that we're peeping into something really private. The photography and the score contribute immensely to make this a phenomenal experience. Highly recommended.