by John Villeneuve
Much like Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire, Samson & Delilah proves to be an endurance test in misery due to poverty and marginalization. That is not to say that the journey is not worth taking. It is. The naturalistic presence of non-actors, Rowan McNamara and Marissa Gibson, root this movie in reality, and the assured, no-frills direction (Warwick Thorton, making his feature film debut) never wallows in excess or gimmicks. Obviously Australians are proud of this film (and they should be), for it is their submission to the Academy for Best Foreign Film.
The film opens in a dry, desert-like setting, populated with shacks and camp sites, where a community of aboriginals live a life in which even the bare necessities are a luxury. There are no schools, no services from the outside world, and presumably, no jobs. Extra money is made by old women who create paintings of extraordinary beauty, but who are exploited by wealthy city-dwelling art dealers. The paintings are produced by making an endless series of coloured dots, the repetition of which reflects the unchanging daily life of each inhabitant. Every morning a ragtag group of musicians bang out the same song on a porch, every morning people and stray dogs forage the barren land for food, hoping for a kangaroo, and every morning Samson wakes up to inhale petrol before carrying on with his day, riding in a wheelchair because he is too stoned to walk. The highlight of his waking life is seeing Delilah, a local girl who escapes her existence by listening to Spanish music, and taking care of her artist grandmother.
In essence, they are a banished people. So when Delilah’s grandmother dies (removing a vital economic resource from the town), Delilah is introduced to the cruelest of ironies. Blamed by the town’s folk for neglecting the grandmother, she is condemned as cursed, beaten, and banished from the community. Only Samson defends her. After shearing her hair off as a kind of self-imposed punishment, Delilah leaves with Samson, into a world not their own.
After some time, they find themselves living under an over-pass, deep in the city, befriended by a homeless man who’s greatest dream is a dwelling of his own. Samson’s addiction to petrol further complicates their situation. His brain is so crippled by his substance abuse that he doesn’t even notice when, one day, Delilah is kidnapped from the street while just feet behind him. However, unlike the biblical myth, it is Delilah who remains strong, with or without hair. It is because of her that they are able to survive hunger, extreme violence and racial indignity. There are no Sandra Bullocks poised to magically sweep in and save them.
What gives Samson & Delilah added power, is it’s non reliance on dialogue. The actors speak to each other, for the most part, with facial expressions. Director, Thorton, chose well when he picked these two young people. Half of the battle in achieving the depths of feeling and naturalism a film of this sort can accomplish is in its casting. And like recent films, Ballast and Frozen River, there is no excessive editing, or genre-confused cinematography, just straight-forward story-telling, and confidence in one’s themes. In fact, there is a moment in Samson & Delilah, dealing with violence, that a lesser director would have exploited. But Thorton doesn’t do this. He just shows us the aftermath, making the horror of what must have been more indelible. It is choices like this that makes one feel that we are in the presence of a great new director. And though it is his first film, it is still one of the years’ very best.
As far as its Oscar chances, I think they are scant. Remember that we are living in a time where the rich continue to get richer, and the poor, poorer. Hollywood eptomizes the rich elite. I don’t think that they are going to promote the need for an equitable distribution of resources and wealth. Nominating Precious, I feel, is as far as they will go. And they will probably counter-punch that recognition of Precious with a ludicrous nomination for The Blind Side’s star. For them to nominate Samson & Delilah would be a kind of recognition that things must change. My hunch, though, is that they like things just as they are.
15 Responses for "Samson, Delilah and Warwick Thorton"
Yes it is a powerful film and an endurance test, but it ends on a positive note, one of hope. The issue of our indigenous population, their treatment past present and future, is a contentious one and ongoing. This film certainly creates conversation if not debate.
We are having a great film year in Australia (S&D is my second fave Oz film after Balibo) and with Samson and Delilah having just been released this week on DVD, it should find a larger audience here than it did at the cinema (though it did rather well for an Oz film in Oz; we’re not so keen on our own films, for shame!)
I mentioned Delilah’s strength, which was meant to imply hopefulness. I would not want any reader to think that this was another sturm und drang scenario. It is not. Fact is, it blossoms into a work of rare beauty and optimism.
Now I really want to see this film–it looks and sounds awesome!
“we’re not so keen on our own films, for shame!”
I hear ya, den. it’s pretty much the same situation up here in Canada.
As a fellow Canadian, Alan, I think our awards governing establishment (i.e., The Genies) does us no favors when they piss off and ignore fellow Canadians like director Jason Reitman who makes movies with lead Canadian actors (Ellen Page, Michael cera, etc), shot in Canada, with an all Canadian crew (I am refering explicitly to Reitman’s outrage when his film Juno garnered no nominations for Canada’s equivalent to the Academy Awards, the Genies). In our case, we are our own worst enemies.
The thing about this film which I think should also be mentioned is how funny it is. It’s definintely the best Australian film of the decade and deserves a nomination – and a win at that. The chances of either are slim, but I can dream.
Whilst it’s pretty dark in spots – and rightly so – the beginning half hour contains some great Australian humour.
Australia has needed a film like this for a long long time – and where it seems this year every Australian and Australian critic has complained about Australian films being too dark – and it’s such a great thing for this film to have achieved the heights it has done (much like Ten Canoes did). And really, who cares how dark the films are when Australia has had some of the best films its ever made?
Also, thanks for doing a piece on Samson & Delilah, the more people who see it the better.
Chamboosy, it is my pleasure to talk about this film. I hope it does not go unnoticed. And, yes, I did notice the humor in its introduction.
I too loved this film, particularly its sparse use of dialogue, giving it a poetic beauty it might have lacked otherwise. I found it harrowing yet uplifting and am glad you’re giving it the attention it deserves. Thanks John!
this movie won’t get nominated, neither Romania’s POLICE ADJECTIVE. Both are tedious, boring movies with no screenplay or story interest. I can agree with them but I can’t agree watching the members of the Foreign Language committee who vote for the Oscar nominees.
The nominees will be:
ARGENTINA – The secret of her eyes
FRANCE – A prophet
GERMANY – The White Ribbon
SOUTH KOREA – Mother
SPAIN – The Dancer and the Thief
Great film. I also think that “The secret of their eyes” (reviewed a week ago) has a strong chance to be nominated.
This was on TV here in Australia earlier in the week. I really must get around to watching it.
2009 – ASIA PACIFIC SCREEN AWARDS
winners
Best Film: Samson and Delilah (Australia)
Best Animated Feature: Mary and Max (Australia)
Best Screenplay: About Elly (Iran)
Lead Actress: Kim Hye-ja, Mother (Korea)
Lead Actor: Masahiro Motoki, Departures (Japan)
Directing: Lu Chuan, City of Life and Death (China)
FYI
It is nice to see Lu Chuan win for City of Life and Death. Why China passed on this film only to submit the dreadful Forever Enthralled (Mei Lanfang) is a mystery.
This is such an important Australian film… it would be great if just a few international people watched it. An achievement for one of the most tragically marginalised people on Earth.
Thanks for doing the piece on S&D, definitely deserves the recognition. As an Aussie, you can’t help but be proud of the films that have been produced this year. I’m holding onto the slim hope that it might sneak into that Best Foreign Film category.
Thanks for the review of “Samson and Delilah.” It’s an excellent movie – I just can’t agree with the comment above that it’s tedious and boring. I found it neither. It’s confronting (for me, a white Aussie, it was, anyway) but the story is told in such a heart-warming and humorous way that I found it irresistable. It helps that the film ends on a hopeful note.
Please, John Villeneuve, could you correct the spelling of Warwick Thornton’s name (note the two n’s in his surname).
Leave a reply
All comments should respect the Awards Daily House Rules. If you think a particular comment breaks these rules then please let us know, quoting the comment in question.