Jindabyne, He Said

Four guys go on a weekend fishing trip. something happens out there, but they don't want to talk about it. A description of the classic movie "Deliverance"? No, but the comparison could be made. In the case of Jindabyne, the guys didn't really do anything other than ignore the commission of a crime while they continued with their fishing. But tying the naked body of a dead aboriginal girl to a tree root while they continued to fish did not sit well with the people from the small town they lived in and in particular the

In the early part of this film a great deal is made about the importance and the tradition of this fishing trip. Enhancing the significance is the addition of a new young recruit to the group. Each of the participants in this foray have issues that are unique and play into the plot, but the main focus is put on the Kane's, Claire and Stewart. Their relationship is clouded by Claire's desertion of the family following the birth of their son. She's back and they are trying to put their lives together again, but there is much that is not settled. Claire is aware of the scrutiny she is under and Stewart still doesn't understand why she left in the first place

When are merry band of fishermen get into the barely accessible stretch of the river, they discover the dead body of an aboriginal girl floating down the river. We saw her abducted and disposed of in the opening of the film. They decide to concoct a story that blames their tardiness on the sprained ankle of one of them.

This lame story (excuse me I couldn't pass that up) didn't fare well with the townspeople and in particular the aboriginal people in the community. They are taken to task for their heartlessness and racism. No one seems to understand their callousness including one member of their own party.

The latter part of the film sees Claire reaching out, seemingly to no avail, to the native people. It's apparent she is doing this to deal with her own issues as well as the greater problems of misunderstanding and mistrust built between the native people and the white people.

This film takes place in a colorless town in Australia. My guess is that the director wanted that pallet to indicate the drabness of life and to focus n the racial tension in the community. Laura Linny is wonderful as the conflicted Claire. Garbriel Byrne equals her as her husband Stewart.

The problem I had was with the continuity of the script. It seems to me some editorial cuts were made that paid little attention to sequence of facts we needed to know to get us from one place to the next. I remember very little of the discussion, the all important discussion, the men had in deciding to tether the body to a tree root while they continued to fish. And I haven't clue how the town suddenly and unanimously decided the story they told was flawed. I think this was a valiant effort to tell an important story that was lost on the cutting room floor