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How do you live as a thirty-two year old ex-drug addict, especially
as you still associate with those involved in the drugs trade?
Tracy is an ex-heroin addict who is trying to stay clean and
raise money to open a video games shop. Tracy has her nerves
and resolve tested to destruction when her ex-boyfriend returns
after four years. She finds that the path to salvation is
littered with dealer brothers, lovers and pushers and a system
that won't forgive her for her past...
Little
Fish is directed by Rowan Woods, who had previously directed,
amongst other things, eighteen episodes of Farscape
- which gets a little mention when Tracy's brother is watching
it on television. Now there's a man who know how to pay homage
to his roots. The film was written by Jacqueline Perske and
in 2005 won five awards from the Australian Film Institute
and was nominated for a further eight. That same year the
film also won three awards from the Film Critics Circle of
Australia Awards and was nominated for a further four. Not
to let that go to its head, it also won three IF awards and
was nominated for a further five. Given that pedigree, and
the quality of actors involved, you just know you're in for
a treat - though a word of warning Little Fish does
not make comfortable watching.
When
we first meet Tracy (Cate Blanchett) we know that something
is off kilter. Even having to navigate a mundane school reunion,
her friends and family are constantly worried about how she
is. The film continues to provide a sense of unease when she
visits her friend Lionel (Hugo Weaving) who is on kissing
relations with his drug dealer, The Jockey (Sam Neill), Her
brother continues to deal and the returning ex-boyfriend isn't
all he claims to be.
The acting is stunningly superb, you almost feel that you
are in the room with the characters and to be honest it's
not a good feeling. The heroin, which dominates their lives
in various ways, pervades every scene, making the whole experience
unsettling and raw. These people lead lives of unresolved
emotion Cate Blanchett's performance as Tracy is nerve jangling
as she tries to get a loan from the bank to finance her new
business, deal with her brother - who is still dealing and
the return of her ex-boyfriend, who had fled the country following
a drugs related accident in which her brother lost a leg.
In the background The Jockey's influence is often unseen in
their lives but remains all pervading.
Of course, she cannot escape her past, none of them can, and
the lies and stealing which fed their habits four years before
is still following them around. This is an essay about the
lives and relationships that drugs destroy. It's a no holds
barred dive into the world of heroin use - not just its personal
cost but also a look at the financial gains associated with
dealing. When all the banks turn down her application for
a loan, will Tracy resist the lure of easy money to finance
her business?
The film comes with audio options for stereo, 5.1 and DTS.
On the extras side you get the original trailer; a set of
five deleted scenes, which run at a little over five minutes
with an optional commentary; a Making Little Fish featurette
which runs at a very respectable twenty minutes and includes
contributions from the writer, the director and some of the
stars which concentrates on the film rather than "how
great we are". To finish the extras there is a twenty-three
minute director's interview and a full length commentary.
This
film is not easy to watch, but it is a powerful, and one worth
picking up if only as an object lesson as to why nobody should
get involved in the drugs trade.
Charles
Packer
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