Cactus

Review by Davin Sgargetta

Considering the seemingly ill-fated recent history of Australian Cinema, with a string of mediocre products in recent years, some might say that titling the new Australian thriller, Cactus, a very bold and dangerous move.

But, at the films end, it thankfully exhibited resilience, rather than doomed fate.

Set in the vast, red sandy plains of NSW, the Jasmine Yuen-Carrucan directed Cactus is an outback adventure of the darkest kind. We follow the cross-country trek of two men with two very distinct objectives.

In an old, but well maintained 1972 Ford Fairmont XA, John Kelly (Travis McMahon, Last Man Standing) must deliver the kidnapped Eli Jones (David Lyons, Sea Patrol) to an unknown, but ominous wanting party, for an unknown reason. As we learn of Eli’s gambling and hustling history, the precise reason for the delivery becomes moot, as his need to escape becomes more and more urgent.

The plan for John is simple: deliver the bad guy, cash the check and attend to a very worthy cause. The plan for Eli is simple: get the hell out of trouble before it gets a lot worse.

But, as with many great plans, simple or otherwise, things go wrong. We learn that our control over events is more about our perception rather than reality. And, we learn that you can take any bad guy and you’ll often find some good, just as you can take any two bad guys, and they will often find the good in each other.

But, will it be too late? Who deserves to come out best in this scenario? Is it a question of the better good prevailing, or of justice being served for any wrong doing?

The pacing will keep you engaged; the feeling of unease is unrelenting. The banter between John and Eli is sparse, yet entertaining and injected with a sense of experienced discipline. It is a great skill communicating to an audience without a great deal of dialogue and Yuen-Carrucan has executed remarkably well, both in her writing and direction. In a similar way, Florian Emmerich hasn’t tried to glorify the Australian landscape with his cinematography; instead revealing the beauty in its simplicity.

The performances of McMahon and Lyons are solid; it’s clear they’ve worked together before as they play off each other well: a testament to the lengthy casting process. Bryan Brown’s role is only minimal, as is Shane Jacobson, but their presence is certainly felt.

For all the successes that Cactus may be, one can’t help but think that it is yet another example of a promising young Aussie Director, left to film the minimal character, low-budget car trip film across the barren Australian outback, as their debut because there is little room or funding for anything else.

And Yuen-Carrucan has achieved some success with this effort.

3 out of 5

Cactus
Australian release: 1st May, 2008
Cast: Travis McMahon, David Lyons, Bryan Brown, Shane Jacobson
Director: Jasmine Yuen-Carrucan

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