Goldstone (film)
Goldstone | |
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Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | Ivan Sen |
Produced by |
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Written by | Ivan Sen |
Starring | |
Music by | Ivan Sen |
Cinematography | Ivan Sen |
Edited by | Ivan Sen |
Production company |
Bunya Productions |
Distributed by | Transmission Films |
Release date |
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Running time | 110 minutes |
Country | Australia |
Language | English |
Budget | $2 million[1] |
Box office | $583,515[2] |
Goldstone is a 2016 Australian crime thriller film directed by Ivan Sen. It is a sequel to Mystery Road and stars Aaron Pedersen, Alex Russell, Jacki Weaver, David Wenham and David Gulpilil. It was released in Australia on 7 July 2016.
Plot
Three years after exposing the corruption in his hometown of Winton, Indigenous Detective Jay Swan is sent to the small mining town of Goldstone to find a missing Asian tourist. He is pulled over by young local cop Josh for driving under the influence, who informs the town's corrupt mayor Maureen. Jay tells Josh of his case and Josh reluctantly lets him stay at his house.
Josh goes to the local mine, Furnace Creek, to meet with the mine's supervisor Johnny, who attempts to bribe Josh into helping Furnace Creek expand their operations. Johnny meets with Maureen, who is trying to help him get past the local Indigenous land council by bribing the land council's head Tommy into allowing the use of Indigenous land. Jay meets with a local Aboriginal elder, Jimmy, on his search for the missing Asian tourist, who leads him to Furnace Creek. Jay sneaks past the security checkpoint and observes several young Asian women leaving a plane and climbing into a van. The women are being forced into prostitution to pay off their individual, unspecified debts. As he returns to his car, he is arrested by Furnace Creek security and detained for the night, where Johnny attempts to intimidate him.
Upon release, Jay goes to meet Maureen where he is chastised. Johnny and Maureen hold a press conference where they announce the mines' expansion, but Jimmy leaves, denying them his signature of approval. Jay receives an anonymous call and collects one of the girls' passports from the caller, then notices Josh's car. He follows Josh to the local creek, where Jimmy's body is hanging from a tree. Jay suspects foul play, but Josh states that Tommy witnessed it.
Josh goes to the local bar/brothel, where the Asian girls are being kept. He befriends a prostitute called Mei and tells her to contact him if she needs help. Jay visits Tommy, who confesses and tells him that Jimmy's death was not a suicide and he was killed by the gang of bikers who work as hitmen for Furnace Creek. Jay consults the man who found the passport and explores the area where it was found. There he finds the skeleton who he assumes was the girl he was assigned to find.
May sees the bikers arrive at the brothel and sends Josh a message. He rushes to the brothel where the girls have disappeared. After interrogating the bartender, Josh is told they are in a trailer in the desert. Josh first visits Maureen who is anxiously shredding paperwork and demands she shuts down the operations. Josh arrives at the trailer to find it empty. The bikers arrive and ambush Josh, forcing him to dig his own grave. Jay, who has followed Josh, incapacitates the bikers with a rifle. Jay then enlists Josh in rescuing the girls.
Jay and Josh drive to the Furnace Creek offices and, after an intense shootout with the bikers, discover the girls' whereabouts. Jay sees Johnny's plane fleeing the mines and chases it while Josh finds and rescues the girls. Jay arrives at the airfield but is intercepted by an armed guard who causes Jay to crash while Johnny escapes. Jay and the guard stand off but decide to spare one another.
Jay and Josh contact state authorities, who retrieve the girls and begin an investigation into the corruption. At Josh's house, he tells Jay that Maureen has skipped town. Jay says goodbye to Josh and drives away from Goldstone into the desert.
Cast
- Aaron Pedersen as Jay Swan
- Alex Russell as Josh Waters
- Jacki Weaver as Maureen the Mayor
- Cheng Pei-pei as Mrs Lao[3]
- David Gulpilil as Jimmy
- Michelle Lim Davidson as May
- David Wenham as Johnny
- Michael Dorman as Patch
- Kate Beahan as Pinky
- Max Cullen as Old Timer
- Tom E. Lewis as Tommy
Reception
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 80% based on 29 reviews, with an average rating of 7.3/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Goldstone weaves socially conscious themes through its procedural thriller plot outline, with visually thrilling, solidly crafted results."[4] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 81 out of 100, based on 6 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[5]
Accolades
Award | Category | Subject | Result |
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AACTA Awards (6th) |
Best Film | David Jowsey | Nominated |
Greer Simpkin | Nominated | ||
Best Direction | Ivan Sen | Nominated | |
Best Original Screenplay | Nominated | ||
Best Editing | Nominated | ||
Best Production Design | Matt Putland | Nominated | |
AFCA Awards | Best Film | David Jowsey | Nominated |
Greer Simpkin | Nominated | ||
Best Director | Ivan Sen | Won | |
Best Screenplay | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Nominated | ||
Best Actor | Aaron Pedersen | Won | |
Best Supporting Actor | David Gulpilil | Nominated | |
Best Supporting Actress | Jacki Weaver | Won | |
ASSG Award | Best Film Sound Recording | Mike Bakaloff | Won |
Nick Emond | Won | ||
BFI London Film Festival | Official Competition for Best Film | Ivan Sen | Nominated |
FCCA Awards | Best Film | David Jowsey | Won |
Greer Simpkin | Won | ||
Best Actor | Aaron Pedersen | Won | |
Best Director | Ivan Sen | Won | |
Best Script/Screenplay | Won | ||
Best Editor | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Nominated | ||
Best Music | Won | ||
Best Actress - Supporting Role | Jacki Weaver | Nominated | |
Sydney Film Festival | Sydney Film Prize for Best Film | Ivan Sen | Nominated |
Toronto International Film Festival | Platform Prize | Nominated | |
References
- ↑ http://www.ausfilm.com.au/news/goldstone-premieres-in-queensland/
- ↑ "Goldstone (2016)". The Numbers. Retrieved 28 February 2018.
- ↑ Eddie Cockrell (8 June 2016). "Film Review: 'Goldstone'". Variety. Retrieved 8 August 2018.
- ↑ "Goldstone (2016)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
- ↑ "Goldstone Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 1 March 2018.