...saw Australia

Worth the 18 bucks I'd say. Overblown melodrama with great cinematography and production design. Hugh Jackman was a great hero, and David Wenham a formidable villain (if slightly under-developed). Kidman was initially terribly hokey in her English-Aristocrat overracting, but slowly eased into her role and finally won me over.

One huge flaw: Baz Luhrmann is not funny. He is lame. And the first 30 minutes were pretty excruciating with all the slapstick bulltwat he kept dishing out to us. But once the actual story began the humour subsided and I enjoyed the flick. A real popcorn epic, very old-fashioned and simplistic, but why not? Bit of fun, I'd say.

Stopping it from potential greatness: the romance lacked sexual tension or believability. It just kind of...happened...and while it was lovely to see them happy, they were more like best friends than lovers, and I think the film could have benefitted from a more passionate love affair within the film's dramatics.

Raising it from okay to good: the Aboriginal-white half-caste Brandon Walters, the heart of the film and very rarely annoying, which is a major feat in itself. Great casting.

Overall: my favourite Baz Luhrmann film, mainly because it does not try quite as hard to be a Baz Luhrmann film. Its generic cliches become kind of endearing. It's a shame it's such a flop in the U.S. I guess the kiddies need something more quickly-edited with teenage vampire lovers to get them going these days.