July 24, 2008

Out of the Blue

outblue

Reviewer: James van Maanen
Rating (out of 5): ****

The miracle managed by Out of The Blue -- a New Zealand movie about a mass murder that took place there in the early 1990s -- is simply that it is not exploitative. While the film offers violence, suspense and shock, along with a bit of humor, it never "plays" its audience nor gives in to the sleazier impulses of so many current filmmakers to spin ugly thrills out of human misery. Yet, under Robert Sarkies' precise direction (he also co-adapted, with Graeme Tetley, the book on which the film is based), there is not an uninteresting moment in the whole endeavor. This is due to the documentary-like feel and the tight look of the film, but also to something more.

Out of the Blue is pure New Zealand: In that beautiful but odd place, there is always a sense of living in the past, by a decade or more -- which has its benefits, as well as its problems. A small town in New Zealand really is a small town, and as one of the police officers thrust into the melee says to his boss, with more than a trace of fear and beseeching, "We're not trained for this!" Indeed. You'll perceive a similar feeling on the part of all the characters in the film -- from neighbors and friends to the police and, in fact, the killer himself -- of suddenly being out of their element. This, of course, places viewers out of theirs, as well. How each character handles the bizarre situation makes for a riveting experience. Each cast member nails his or her role beautifully, including a number of children on view. (The only actor viewers up north may recognize is the lead cop, played by Karl Urban: TV's "Xena" and "Hercules," The Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Riddick and Pathfinder.)


As an aside: During one of my trips to this small, southern, dual island, which occurred within a year or so of the time of the massacre, a local newspaper of relatively large circulation featured a story about a "high-speed" chase by the police of a van carrying stolen property. The police, so the paper reported, were very concerned about their own car going too fast, because this might cause the suspect vehicle to speed up, thus endangering its own passengers as well as any pedestrians nearby. Finally, the van was stopped and the suspects arrested. The loot? Not cash, nor jewels, nor even TV sets or other appliances. The van was full of potatoes.



Bookmark and Share Posted by cphillips at July 24, 2008 12:40 PM