David O'ConnellKaren Moncrieff's Blue Car (2002)
May 1st 2008 05:47
Last year I was fortunate to see the wonderful 2nd film of director Karen Moncrieff called The Dead Girl, which was segmented or divided into five interconnected stories revolving around the discovery - in the opening story - of a dead girl's body. It was grim and thought-provoking, with an impressive ensemble, mostly female cast including Australia's own Toni Collette and Rose Byrne.
As impressive as The Dead Girl was, Moncrieff had previously set a high mark in standards with her directorial debut back in 2002 with a film called Blue Car, which I admired a lot when I first saw it and revisited again recently.
Like her later film, the subject matter is dark and unrelenting, it's about a teenager, Megan (Agnes Bruckner) with a talent for poetry who is encouraged and mentored by her teacher (David Straithairn) to shrug off the troublesome things happening in her life, to overcome her inner demons and to not betray the talent he sees in her, which she seems to dismiss with barely a second thought.
But does he have an ulterior motive behind all this encouragement? Or is he just another one of those wonderful inspirational teachers we all wish we'd had and so readily depicted in American films? The answers are not so clear-cut for much of the film.
Megan's home life is a bleak one. Her father left when she was very young, and one of her poems - the film's title - is an illuminating reflection on her last view of him from her bedroom window, driving away for the last time. Her younger sister has issues of her own and is constantly ill because she refuses to eat. And she is constantly at odds with her mother, who slaves away at more than one menial job and is rarely home anyway.
The film climaxes at an out-of-state national poetry competition that Megan has won the right to compete in, and there a few surprises awaiting, including one that is confronting on many levels.
Moncrieff proves to be a wonderful first-time writer and Bruckner, who is the heart of the film, proves to be a performer talented beyond her years (she was only16 or 17 at the time).
Blue Car is definitely a film worth tracking down on dvd, which also has an excellent audio commentary with the director. The ending is an unpredictable one, both poignant and powerful with its moral and ethical complications.
This is a film I hope you'll greatly admire, as I do.
As impressive as The Dead Girl was, Moncrieff had previously set a high mark in standards with her directorial debut back in 2002 with a film called Blue Car, which I admired a lot when I first saw it and revisited again recently.
Like her later film, the subject matter is dark and unrelenting, it's about a teenager, Megan (Agnes Bruckner) with a talent for poetry who is encouraged and mentored by her teacher (David Straithairn) to shrug off the troublesome things happening in her life, to overcome her inner demons and to not betray the talent he sees in her, which she seems to dismiss with barely a second thought.
But does he have an ulterior motive behind all this encouragement? Or is he just another one of those wonderful inspirational teachers we all wish we'd had and so readily depicted in American films? The answers are not so clear-cut for much of the film.
Megan's home life is a bleak one. Her father left when she was very young, and one of her poems - the film's title - is an illuminating reflection on her last view of him from her bedroom window, driving away for the last time. Her younger sister has issues of her own and is constantly ill because she refuses to eat. And she is constantly at odds with her mother, who slaves away at more than one menial job and is rarely home anyway.
The film climaxes at an out-of-state national poetry competition that Megan has won the right to compete in, and there a few surprises awaiting, including one that is confronting on many levels.
Moncrieff proves to be a wonderful first-time writer and Bruckner, who is the heart of the film, proves to be a performer talented beyond her years (she was only16 or 17 at the time).
Blue Car is definitely a film worth tracking down on dvd, which also has an excellent audio commentary with the director. The ending is an unpredictable one, both poignant and powerful with its moral and ethical complications.
This is a film I hope you'll greatly admire, as I do.
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Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
I really enjoyed Blue Car to and found a lot of merit in its delicate tale. Sure it had some faults and misteps but overall an impressive debut.
I have Dead Girl in my must watch pile by the home theatre as we speak, hoping to watch it this weekend as Ive had a stellar recommendation from Bryn over on Horrophile. (Doesn't hurt I'm a big fan of Rose Byrne too)
Really enjoying your site and the reviews, keep up the good work..it seems we are impressed by similar films.
Comment by Anonymous
i love your work it amazes me u have all the to do this
keep it up
love always Tasha
Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic
And thankyou also to my dear 10 year old niece Natasha for reading!!! I appreciate it! (:
Comment by RubySoho
Music Zone
Thought Zone
Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD