THE MOVIE

Introduction:

You would be forgiven for thinking (at first glance) that ’The Rage in Placid Lake” is the latest attempt by an Australian director at the ho-hum teen slasher genre. Thankfully, we can all take a deep breath and relax as director Tony McNamara delivers a film that seeks to challenge pre-conceived notions of Australian films. In fact, I’d go as far as to state that ’The Rage in Placid Lake’ delivers some much needed spice into the Australian film industry mix.

’The Rage in Placid Lake’ is currently a rental title and will be available to purchase on 11 August 2004. The film features an all star Aussie-cast that includes the likes of Ben Lee (in his feature film debut), Rose Byrne, Garry McDonald and Miranda Richardson.

Synopsis (courtesy of www.rageinplacidlake.com):

"Precocious, bohemian teenager Placid Lake, finishes high school and decides to do the one thing that will annoy his new age parents the most - go straight! A few weeks with a library of self- help manuals and Placid has it sorted - and he has the haircut and the cheap suit to prove it.

Can Placid Lake retire his rage in the pursuit of beige; embrace conformity and leap on the fast track to corporate success. Will his brainiac friend Gemma be able to talk him out of this economic rationalist madness?

And will poor Doug and Sylvia survive the ignominy of having a son with a burgeoning future in insurance?

A razor-sharp wit lurks beneath a blanket of pastel hued, middle-class suburbia in Tony McNamara’s blackly comedic The Rage In Placid Lake, filmed in glorious ‘Geek-o-rama’.

Never underestimate the evil of banality."

Commentary:

As alluded to above, ’The Rage in Placid Lake’ is best defined as a pleasant surprise. Whilst the film has all the trademarks of its predecessors (e.g. a tale of a little Aussie battler, quirkiness and sexuality overload), what makes the film so satisfying is the ingenious way in which it critiques some of the “good –old” Australian institutions (e.g. family, education, career and sex).

The title of this particular movie refers literally to the “rage” that is bottled up within the film’s protagonist named “Placid Lake”, as well as the underlying frustration felt by so many of the film’s secondary character. These frustrations focus primarily on the suppression of individuality within different environments (e.g. at home, school and work).

’The Rage in Placid Lake’ was written and directed by Tom McNamara (of Channel Ten’s “The Secret Life of Us” fame) and is in fact based loosely on one of McNamara’s stage plays. What made McNamara’s screenplay so memorial for me was the unique spin on the classic coming-of-age tale intertwined with deadpan (yet intelligent) humour and a sense of never quite knowing what will happen next.

’The Rage in Placid Lake’ features an impressive Australian cast that includes real-life quirk Ben Lee in his feature film debut as the lead character, Placid Lake. Ben’s performance takes a little time to warm to at first, however, by the film’s second act, it is pretty clear that there could be no proxy for Lee in the role of Placid Lake. In any event, you have to give Lee credit for taking the plunge at the beginning of his acting career. In some respects, ’The Rage in Placid Lake’ seems like the perfect vehicle for Lee’s alternative-esque celebrity, and one that seemed (at times) to be created with Lee already in mind.

Also included in the cast is a radiant Rose Byrne who brings such a warmth to the screen as Placid’s long-time friend and potential love interest Gemma. Given Byrne’s amazing screen presence and knack at comic timing, it’s not hard to see why she has been swept up by some of Hollywood’s most impressive producers and directors over the past year.

Then of course there are Placid’s parents in the form of Garry McDonald and Miranda Richardson who can do no wrong. Witness the ease at which Richardson recovers from Placid’s accidental discovery of his mother’s sexual experiments, or the restrained manner in which McDonald reacts to Placid’s criticisms of his father’s persona.

Needless to say, I thoroughly enjoyed this particular romp, which has reinvigorated my interest and perception of Australian cinema.

THE TRANSFER

Video:

’The Rage in Placid Lake’ is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1 and is anamorphically enhanced.

Picture detail is almost reference quality on this disc with no evidence of unintentional grain or edge enhancement. Pleasingly, there were also no instances of artefacting present on this disc.

The colour palette was superb and skin tones were natural. There was no evidence of colour bleeding or inappropriate saturation. This is really saying something given the amount of colour on offer (Just look at the DVD sleeve!!!). What I particularly enjoyed was the contrast of colours used to define different environments (e.g. the metallic and sterile hues of Corporate Australia versus the lush, warm and earthy interior of the Lake’s residence). A significant portion of the film is filmed either at night or in dark interiors and therefore it is pleasing to note that there were no issues with blacks and/or shadow detail.

As this disc is single layered, there was no layer transition.

Audio:

’The Rage in Placid Lake’ is presented with a Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 soundtrack.

Personally, I found both soundtracks to be similar in nature except that the 5.1 mix had a greater soundscape during times of surround usage (i.e. during the many action/chase sequences and/or quirky sound effects).

As there were no subtitles on offer, it is pleasing to note that there were no issues with dialogue or audio-sync on this soundtrack. Use of the subwoofer is reserved primarily for the film’s pop/rock soundtrack.

THE EXTRAS

The extras on this disc are not really impressive, but it is nice to see an attempt being made to provide supplemental material for low-budget Australian films.

(i) Biographies

Two page biographies are available for the following cast and crew:

- Ben Lee (Placid);
- Rose Byrne (Gemma);
- Garry McDonald (Doug);
- Miranda Richardson (Sylvia);
- Nicholas Hammond (Bill);
- Tony McNamara (Writer/Director); and
- Marion MacGowan (Producer).

(ii) Photo Gallery

This is a selection of 20 still pictures that range from promotional to actual film footage.

(iii) Theatrical Trailer (2:19)

The original theatrical trailer for ’The Rage in Placid Lake’ is featured in this section in a non-anamorphic 1.85:1 aspect ratio and with a Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack. The trailer seems a little too long for my liking and includes several key sequences that would have benefited from being left under wraps.

(iv) More From Palace Films

This section promotes new and existing ’Palace Films’ DVD releases. The trailers on offer are:

- “Erskinville Kings” (2:30);
- “Japanese Story” (2:19);
- “I’m with Lucy” (1:35); and
- “Happy Texas” (2:14).

SUMMARY

’The Rage in Placid Lake’ deserves every bit of praise that could be bestowed upon it by the viewing public. Quite frankly, this is Australian cinema without a safety harness, and isn’t it amazing what can be achieved without constraints.

The DVD release of ’The Rage in Placid Lake’ is a competent effort with a fantastic video and audio transfer. The only real gripe is the lack of any meaty extras to savour with the main course.

[Rated M for sexual references, medium level coarse language, medium level sex scenes and low level violence]