Snowtown Review

3rd Apr 2012

Set in a grim, destitute suburb of Adelaide, Snowtown, the debut film from Director Justin Kurzel, is hard-hitting and bloody depressing. Jamie Vlassakis (Lucas Pittaway) and his brothers live in squalor with their distracted mother, who unwittingly uses the neighbourhood paedophile as a babysitter. Subjected to abuse from both his neighbour and his step-brother, schizophrenic Jamie’s life looks hopeless and bleak. But when the charismatic John Bunting and his tight group of friends burst into the lives of the Vlassakis family things start to look up. Bunting takes John under his wing, teaching him skills, helping him out with problems and becoming a strong father figure in the sad boy’s life. Unfortunately Bunting is not the nice guy he seems, he is controlling, manipulative and has a violent temper, but more disturbingly Bunting and his buddies seem to enjoy the dubious pastime of torturing and murdering alleged child molesters and Bunting is determined to drag Jamie into his violent lifestyle. And so we follow Jamie on his dark journey from troubled, abused teen to a participant in Australia’s most notorious murders.

This is a heavy film made weightier by the fact it’s a dramatic account of true events, with John Bunting widely considered to be Australia’s “worst serial killer”. This depiction of the events surrounding the Snowtown killings are very much from Jamie’s perspective, not particularly surprising considering he eventually turned on his mentor and became a star witness for the prosecution.

Jamie’s character is portrayed as a victim of his circumstance and environment, so it’s heartbreaking to watch him as he inevitably follows Bunting down his dark and twisted path, although how accurately this reflects reality is up for debate. The sympathy felt for the character of Jamie is due, in no small part, to an excellent, touching and near silent portrayal by newcomer Lucas Pittaway. But it is Daniel Henshall as the charismatic John Bunting that really makes an impact. When Bunting is first introduced he has a genuine twinkle in his eyes and his kindness to Jamie lifts the film, but as the story continues we see subtle changes and by the end the twinkling eyes are replaced by the cold, dark eyes of a sociopath and Henshall succeeds in putting the audience on edge in a way that’s reminiscent of Joe Pesci’s psychotic character in Goodfellas. Henshall never hams it up and never puts a foot wrong, his performance is outstanding. In fact, the entire cast is excellent throughout, so it came as something of a surprise to discover most of them are novices.

Kurzel expertly captures the poverty, despair and disenchantment of Adelaide’s slum suburbia and it’s no surprise to learn that he grew up in the neighbourhood where the film is set. Employing lingering wide shots of the rundown neighbourhood and using locals as extras, rather than actors, Kruzel’s debut seems as much about the dire socio-economic state of Australia’s under-class as it is about the brutal Snowtown murders. In fact Kurzel’s unrelenting use of “scenic” wide shots makes the broken suburban setting as much a character in this film as anyone else.

Snowtown is an intelligent film and while it may be ambiguous in parts, it refuses to spoon-feed its audience which makes for a refreshing change. However, the dialogue is lacking in parts and the film can occasionally feel rather slow. These are the only criticisms this reviewer can level at the film. The cast are brilliant, the direction is beautiful and the story is both subtle and horrific. Snowtown is a harrowing and very powerful film that will stay with you long after it’s ended, whether you want it to or not!