Radiance
Directed by Rachel Perkins
With Rachael Maza, Deborah Mailman and Trisha Morton-Thomas
Distributed by PolyGram
Screening nationally from October 8
Review by Francesca Davis
An isolated house in rural Queensland is haunted by the ghosts of the past. Three sisters are brought together for the funeral of their mother to grieve, reconcile and celebrate.
Cressy, the eldest, is an opera singer who just wants to go to the funeral then get out of there. The middle sister, Mae, is a nurse who took care of her dying mother and is bitter and brutally pragmatic. Nona, the youngest, just wants everyone to love each other and has no idea of the complicated past her sisters remember.
In just 24 hours they begin to unravel each others' secrets and bond again.
Radiance is a great movie, alternately intense, moving and hilarious. The rivalries and the different roles the sisters take on will all be familiar to people who have siblings. This makes the story quite accessible, despite its often grim nature.
While the film seeks to deal with universal themes about sister relationships, the fact that the three women are Aboriginal means these issues are dealt with in a very specific context, which certainly adds depth to the film. Add to that its setting in idiosyncratic rural Queensland and you have an amazing drama.
The film is based on a stage play written by Louis Nowra, who also wrote Cosi and Heaven's Burning.
The three actors — Rachael Maza, Deborah Mailman and Trisha Morton-Thomas — give wonderful performances. Morton-Thomas' Mae was particularly impressive. Mailman's easy manner as Nona really succeeded in drawing the audience into the film.
The fact that all three have also performed Radiance probably helped. Director Rachel Perkins went to a lot of trouble to ensure the dynamics between the three actors worked well.
An often emotionally intense dialogue is broken up with shots of the Queensland coast, as well as humour. What happened to Cressy? Why is Mae so bitter? After a struggle between Mae and Nona results in Mum's ashes being scattered across the living room carpet, how will they pick them up again?
This is a story about how three sisters deal with issues like being part of the stolen generations, rape and death with strength and humour, and how they come together as sisters.
Don't miss this movie.