Reviews

Oh my lord, it's like Sam Neill and Michael Caton went to the wrong studio and ended up in some other movie. Their acting was superb but, the movie overall is more like a television production in that the other actors seemed fairly light weight if only because the story line introduced and then failed to develop the sub plots. The young lovers, the fire fighters, the wacky government guy, went nowhere and of course the biggy - Lez's hatred for his brother (overacting much), we never really know why the two brothers aren't talking. It's a stretch to say one brother inherited the whole farm and they haven't spoken for 40 years. In fact just about every thing in this movie is annoyingly implausible. From the vet's strange attempts to cuddle up to an old and dirty sheep farmer who lives in fairly squalid conditions to the over blown silly reaction to a not so serious disease. And then, of course, the traditional Australian dark melancholic sense of hopelessness through out almost the entire movie followed by a incomprehensible spirited uplift just 5 minutes from the end... like, give me a break, this movie does not mirror reality, period though, it's worth a look in too watch Caton and Neill crush their roles superbly.

The 60's and 70's were a strange irrational time for people the world over. The ground movement of rock & roll was absorbed by pop and morphed into disco fuelling a period where the values of teenage youth everywhere appeared to be influenced by a dream. It was like the world had dropped a trip and suddenly people could live out there fantasies in such a conspicuous way that it only makes sense when compared with the symptoms of a virus. This film is a result of that viral exploration, one that has brought us in 2020 to the brink of a panic which I think can only be averted if we all take the antidote, no not a vaccine but, the red pill.

This simple but dark tale of an odd middle-aged microbiologist working for the water and sewerage board develops a crush on his beautiful neighbor. He spends his days doing the one thing he loves most, observing microbes through a microscope. Peering down his tube of lenses into a magical world of colour and movement he is fascinated by dancing microbes (ecoli, yeech) all writhing together, embracing and multiplying under the psychedelic beam of his microscope. So absorbed by the microbial love fest unfolding before him, he is unable to function normally. Like an amnesiac he blunders through the world until he is safe in his dreary top floor flat surrounded by his collections of nature and scientific periodicals.

Disturbed by loud music from the neighbours flat, he tosses a clock at the wall which breaks away a small hole through to the adjoining flat. A beam of light shines forth from the hole into which he now peers. Accompanied by the twanging sounds of George Harrison's wonky sitar compositions, the psychodelic sight of dancing naked human flesh excites him. He must see more so, in a frenzy, more holes are made. Just like the microbes he peers at through his microscope, he peeps at a beautiful naked girl with whom, as the days go by, he falls in love.

Does he realize that, just as the microbes at the end of his microscope are unattainable, so too is his love unattainable as he peeps through the holes in his wonderwall . Then it gets really cringe worthy, unfortunately for the silly plodder and the 2nd half of this film, he takes the blue pill and surrenders to the virus. I give it a 3.

..Ben Affleck. If he and his influence weren't a part of this movie, it would have creamed the box office. For the most part he looked like he was sleep walking, out of shape and distracted with probably way too much say in the production and direction it seems. I loved that scene where they tossed a billion dollars down that giant plot hole in the Andes along with any sensible plot direction. Too much buddy talk and pandering to moralistic ideals I'd say. OK, they all loved Tom but, really, why give Tom's family everything they fought tooth and nail for, to escape there miserable wretched lives, remember. Are we to believe their reasons for doing the job in the first place were completely bogus? This all seems to be a huge virtue signalling exercise injected into the middle of a fairly good idea for a movie... yep, Ben Afflek I'll betcha. It all seemed a tad amateurish from the moment they decided to throw caution to the wind and take extra time to moralize over GREED aaand, that's what the movie was all about, wasn't it. A self righteous disappointment of a movie about greed, sacrifice, trust, love and loss, no winners there, least of all the box office... well done Ben.

Having just watched Notorious, I am utterly bewildered by all the 10/10 votes here in this forum...pages of them...are you kidding, how does anyone think this film is anything other then a LEMON?? The acting is average at best, the film work is a pretty poor effort with all the fake jerky backgrounds and the plot is a real stinker. This is one of those movies where each scene blunders into the next probably because they simply made it up as they went along. I can not help but feel that someone with a trunk load of money said lets hire the best director and actors, have a wild time making a movie and make a ton of cash no matter what the result.

The only reason this movie floats is due to Grant and Bergman's charisma and the expectation that they will produce something memorable, but alas they are no match for an illogical and poorly constructed story line. Even though Hitchcock's directing is brilliant as always, it seems that no one is keeping an eye on the plot. Grants portrayal of a government agent is uneasy, you can tell he is uncomfortable with the role as it compromises his well trod persona of the flippant shallow charmer and thus he appears to be a bit out of his depth. The result of this is a stilted chemistry between Grant and Bergman. Bergman seems to fall in love much too fast and desperately to be believable and Grant doesn't seem to fall in love at all...because he is, I feel, attempting to play to the best of his ability a serious secret agent but is deprived of his own natural creative input unlike the carefree Romeo roles he is used to. Notorious is after all, supposed to be serious thriller and there's the problem - someone should have mentioned that to the writer.

Do the secret agents have a plan - well, kinda...send the daughter of a nazi collaborator into the home of an ex-nazi to find out what he is up to because they suspect he's up to something being the nazi that he is..and that's it, no other reason. Nobody has staked out the house, they have no idea who comes or goes. These guys are not believable as secret agents, especially the handsome one...what's up with that anyway, twice he is referred to as good looking - what for, are they making fun of his HUGE nose or is it some kind of in-joke on the set. So they set up Alisha to accidentally meet Alex..with Devlin right next to them. You might be thinking, well that doesn't matter because the agent is going to drop out of sight and won't be seen again - wrong, Devlin doesn't give a stuff if they suspect him or not. So Alex has a dinner party and invites Alicia who can't help herself but look extremely suspicious even though nothing unusual happens. The chap jibbering at the wine bottle may well have been drunk for all she knew. You can't understand a word he said anyway but nevertheless they knock him off just for good measure...true Nazis indeed, too bad he was their only metalurgist.

The next day they go to the races where Devlin meets Alicia to exchange information, right under Alex's nose, but alas, no alarm bells just yet. Alex, like an insanely jealous 10 year old, has fallen in love with Alicia almost instantly and wants her to prove she doesn't love Devlin by marrying him...in a few days time. Up to this point she seems to be just uncomfortable around Alex who fails to notice there is ABSOLUTELY zero chemistry between them. This woman is one cold fish but she goes along with it anyway, Mata Hari could get a few lessons from this girl. This is where the alarm bells should be ringing off the hook. Do the Nazis put him on a plane back to berlin for such crazy schoolboy behaviour, do the agents pull her out because Devlin may have jeopardised her cover, why hell no, the stuff-ups are just getting going.

In a dazzling moment of stupidity Alicia takes the Key to the wine cellar from Alex's key chain whilst he is getting changed. She is suspicious that he is keeping something in the cellar so instead of simply asking for the key or alerting Devlin who, like all good secret agents doesn't need a goddam key....she just goes ahead and steels it, an action from which no amount of plot twist can possibly redeem her buns, she has without doubt blown her cover as soon as Alex goes to the wine cellar. Had she forgotten they are having a big party with lots of WINE that night, what the hell was she thinking...that Alex might think the key just fell off the chain. But lets ignore this for a moment and assess the brilliant plan Devlin comes up with. He simply shows up at the party and is all over Alicia in front of Alex and his cronies but are they suspicious...nope, not in the slightest. Cary Grant's good looks are enough to unnerve any man and send them into spiralling depths of depression so they overlook his little indiscretions.

Off to the cellar go Devlin and Alicia where they discover the secret wine bottle amongst thousands of other bottles in about 25 seconds. They high tail it back upstairs but Alex busts them on his way down just outside the cellar door, so Devlin executes stage 2 of his ingenious plan by grabbing Alicia and kissing her in front of Alex after which Devlin simply says sayonara and takes off, good plan dude, save your own butt.