I've just seen a screening of The Sapphires and have to say that it's one of the best mainstream films I've seen in a long time. It was exhilarating: making me cry, laugh and want to dance. Over the years, there have been some amazing films of and about Aboriginal Australia. One of the very best being Warwick Thornton's heart breaking Sampson And Delilah. Some people will belittle The Sapphires for not being similarly heavy but this film is not that film. This film, with it's Aboriginal writer and director (and cast, cinematographer (the wonderfully talented Warwick Thornton) and choreographer) is another film. It is a celebration of spiritedness and strength, lovingly made and deftly told. It left me with vivid impressions of the lives of the characters and of Australia at that time. Tremendous chemistry between Chris O'Dowd and Deborah Mailman and the rest of the cast drew me in and up, as did the spine tinglingly good soul singing from Jessica Mauboy. Newcomers Shari Sebbens and Miranda Tapsell were great too. I can't believe that this was Wayne Blair's first feature. Good on you Goalpost for bringing an important script to (hopefully) a wide audience and doing it with such flair.
Review of The Sapphires
