By Hilary Barker, Penrith and the Borders CLP member
This is a revenge comedy drama, starring Kate Winslet and Judy Davies and I loved this film! It makes you laugh, and it makes you cry. It has wonderful cinematography too.
Set in a small town in 1950s Australia, it begins with the arrival of a mysterious woman stepping down from the bus with a sewing machine as hand luggage. The landscape is dry and dusty with granite boulders and dead trees dotted about this wheat growing area.
The town is mean in every possible way and is populated by very mean people. She is magnificent and totally out of place in her designer clothing and film star looks. What is she doing here? Mouths drop in astonishment.
In fact, she is returning to her middle of nowhere, dusty, impoverished hometown after 25 years away. Kate Winslet stars as Myrtle “Tilly” and Judy Davies as Molly Dunnage, her dotty eccentric mother. Myrtle is beautiful, intelligent and mysterious. Liam Hemsworth stars as Teddy McSwinney a laid-back, handsome charmer.
The story is sad, funny, poignant and uplifting. It portrays the humanity in the town at its worst and at its best. Tilly is beautifully acted by Kate Winslet, accompanied by a background of 1950s nostalgic music, and the clothes are quite unbelievably magnificent! But, I don’t want to say too much and spoil it for you. Watch it – you won’t regret it!
