| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
  Film: Look Both Ways August 21, 2005 Reporter : Peter Thompson Director: Sarah Watt Watch video  If you've ever dreamt of writing a feature film, you might have been seized by the idea of capturing the delicious essence of ordinary, everyday life. The point being, if you're prepared to dig a bit, there's nothing ordinary about it. We walk around with this huge computer between our ears and yet the world can still be bewilderingly complex and endlessly surprising. The remarkable thing about Sarah Watt and her new film Look Both Ways is she takes us inside her characters, into their rich, often bizarre imaginations. And she does it with such wit and such love for them that they feel like people we know. Or should know. In the film, it looks like an ordinary Friday but for Nick it's a day he won't forget. A routine visit to the doctor reveals he probably has cancer spreading out of control through his body. He'll have to wait until Monday to confirm the diagnosis. Meanwhile, Meryl is returning home from her father's funeral and, once again, while everything looks pretty relaxed, her internal world is an anxious storm of unpredictable disaster. Nick's cancer may be real — that depends on more tests. But Meryl doesn't need actual catastrophes to put her in a blue funk. She'll spend the weekend in the war zone of her head. SARAH WATT: "I try and say things like it's a romantic comedy. But unfortunately I have a tendency to look on the blacker side of life, so I suppose it's a romantic comedy about fear, maybe, with a little death thrown in." Her own recent and unexpected brush with death aside, Sarah Watt is happy contemplating the fragility of life. That's what brings Nick and Meryl together on this hot summer weekend. But it's also something that touches every character in this very Australian story.  SARAH WATT: "Most Australians do live pretty good lives, we live a long time, we live a healthy time, you know, we have most things we need. And yet we're fearful, we're anxious and you know, there's a depression epidemic, apparently. So I suppose the film was a little bit of a look at that world in Australia."Look Both Ways tells several intertwined stories simultaneously, some about people facing genuine crises and some about coming to terms with the imaginary fears that possess them. The surprising thing is that it's recognisably true and funny at the same time. SARAH WATT: "William McInness is a great comic actor, I think, and is probably a bit unsung in that area. I suppose the actors needed to be able to carry the comedy but then also go quite deeply the other way into drama. So the film needed really good actors. Justine Clark, I think, carries it so well because she's one of those people you just know you care about, you want to go on the journey with her, you feel with her and she has a great comic timing." Sarah Watt's 15 years of experience with animation have given her a very precise visual imagination, but it's not just the combination of live action and animation that makes Look Both Ways strikingly original. She has an unusual but very persuasive perspective on the world around her. SARAH WATT: "I think if you don't let anxiety and depression get to you then understanding the fragility of life should also enhance the joy of life. I mean, it has to!"  Look Both Ways is deceptively transparent and simple but weaves its own special magic. I think you'll find the word-of-mouth on this film is particularly strong. If there's a hurdle to jump it's that the target audience is a particularly choosy one: people who like their films finely crafted and well-thought-out and touched with genuine wit and wisdom as well. Not everyone's cup of tea, but highly recommended.For movie session times, visit: ninemsn's Movie Guide |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
