December Boys Review

"December Boys" reviews

Movie

December Boys

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2007-09-25 21:32:14

Rating

3.5/5

Provider

CinemaSource

Review

This poignant coming-of-age story is a beautifully realized exploration of the nature of family, set against the gorgeous backdrop of some of Australia's wildest landscapes.

Story

Four tweener boys—Maps (Daniel Radcliffe), Misty (Lee Cormie), Spit (James Fraser), and Spark (Christian Byers)--have grown up together in a dusty Catholic orphanage deep in Australia's outback during the 1970's. The boys are fast friends, partly because they are the home's December Boys, the only four born in that month. As the film begins, all four are once again passed over by an adoptive couple--and disappointed once again in their collective dream of leaving the place and becoming part of a real family. But fate steps in, as the foursome gets the life-altering chance to go for Christmas vacation to visit an elderly couple that lives by a gorgeous cove on the sea. As their holiday progresses, the boys begin to compete for the affections of another family living in the magical cove, a couple contemplating adopting a child. By the time the holiday is over, all four have had an unforgettable life experience that will shape the rest of their days.

Acting

Daniel Radcliffe branches out from his iconic role as Harry Potter with this terrific performance as Maps, the eldest of the four orphan boys. As a slightly hardened teen who secretly longs for love and stability, this character is very different from Harry (despite the orphan thread that links the two together), and Radcliffe inhabits him completely. The other three boys also give natural, believable performances, especially Lee Cormie, who is the film's narrator and central character. His portrayal of that bespectacled, artistic, smaller-than-the-others Misty is nuanced and brave, quite the accomplishment for a kid who has only just turned fifteen. The rest of the gifted cast--including iconic Aussie actor Jack Thompson, of classics like Breaker Morant and The Man from Snowy River--all add to the overall quality of this well- acted telling of an emotional, but never sappy, story of adolescent longing and coming of age.

Direction

Australian Rod Hardy spent more than 20 years in Hollywood, directing mostly episodic television, with a few made-for-TV movies (Buffalo Girls) and feature films (Robinson Crusoe with Pierce Brosnan). With December Boys, Hardy headed back home to use all that experience to make a film that speaks to the emotions of childhood which resonates into adult experience. Using the incredible landscapes of Oz as a key element of the story, Hardy creates a visual cornucopia that parallels the emotional journey the four orphans take through the course of the film. His adept handling of many of the most universal life passages--first kiss, loss of parents, love/hate of siblings, dealing with the death of a loved one--bring a strong realism to the story adapted from a novel by Michael Noonan. Yet there's a hint of magical realism to the tale, too, as well as a strong religious undertone. All meld into a cinematic experience that will engage you and stay with you long after the credits roll.

Bottom Line

Hollywood.com rated this film 3 1/2 stars.

Copyright © CinemaSource 2007.

Movie

December Boys

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2007-09-07 14:40:32

Provider

MRIB

Review

Daniel Radcliffe is released from the shackles of Hogwarts to become a muggle (okay, enough Harry Potter references) for the lead role of Maps in this Australian novel-based film about a group of orphan boys.

It's the 1960s and four orphanage boys who are repeatedly passed over for adoption in favour the younger residents have their spirits raised when they're selected, as it's their birthdays in December, to go on a seaside holiday. In a coastal hamlet they settle in with the McAnsh's. The four - Maps, Spark, Misty and Spit - embark on exploration and adventure and soon discover the couple next door to the McAnsh's are interested in a adopting one of them. So they begin to compete for their affections to become the ideal choice, testing their friendships to the limit for the opportunity to become part of a real family. All except Maps, who believes he is too old for adoption and that his place is at the orphanage. Instead he meets Lucy and a first romance develops that exposes Maps's genuine innocence and inexperience with the opposite sex and life outside the orphanage.

This reflective, romantic rights of passage is told with a backdrop of the beautiful sun and sand of southern Australia and evades the brutal hardships of orphans. Instead it illustrates how relationships can change and bonds will develop when new challenges and opportunities emerge. The four leads exhibit a clear and engaging chemistry imbibing their characters virtues with wit and pathos. The ensemble performance supersedes Radcliffe's profile (the recognisable and lynchpin face) and his sometimes shaky accent, making it refreshing to see him in a new role and provide ample first evidence on-screen that there's more to him than the JK Rowling-penned franchise.

Like Stand By Me - another famed story of boyhood growth and regeneration - this is excellently shot with each scene capturing the heat of the setting and the intensity of the burning and turbulent emotions of it's characters. This film has plenty to offer: it'll give you laughs, extol poignant memories and provide a lump in your throat from time to time too. Refreshingly evocative cinema.

Copyright © MRIB 2007.