Cactus Movie Review

Cast: Travis McMahon, David Lyons, Bryan Brown, Shane Jacobson
Director: Jasmine Yuen Carrucan
Screenplay: Jasmine Yuen Carrucan
Genre: Drama/Thriller
Rated: M Moderate violence, moderate coarse language and sexual references
Running Time: 90 Minutes
Released: 1 May 2008

Choose The Wrong Road And You're...

Synopsis:
A man is kidnapped from his city home in the quiet hours of the night and, the kidnapper, John Kelly, embarks on a journey into the Australian Outback towards the place where his hostage is due for delivery. As time and distance roll by, the strength and endurance of both men will be tested to the very end.

My Verdict:
Factory worker John Kelly (Travis McMahon) kidnaps professional gambler Eli Jones (David Lyons) from his home in the city in the middle of the night, anesthetises him and heads off into the Australian outback in his beloved red Ford Fairmont, Bonnie. When Eli wakes, he has no idea why he has been kidnapped, gets no response from John and has no idea where they are going. As the hours progress and the miles go by, John and Eli slowly reveal themselves to each other and their reasons for why they might be in the predicament they both find themselves in. Contracted to kidnap, John is supposed to deliver Eli to a third party somewhere in the outback, but their trip doesn't go as planned.

Taking a few days before they near their destination, the relationship between John and Eli gradually develops with each slowly revealing their thoughts and their opinions about each other. Travis McMahon plays the kidnapper with great skill, letting just the right amount of emotion rule his performance. David Lyons really takes on the role as the kidnappee with conviction in what must have been challenging both physically and mentally.

Cactus is visually full of vast Australian outback plains that evokes a feeling of helplessness - when John is fed up with Eli he lets him run from the car, but Eli has nowhere to run to, such is the enormity of the outback. It is these kind of moments that make John and Eli realise they are at the mercy of each other and their surroundings.

Very much a two-player vehicle, the support cast of Cactus have relatively minor roles and include Bryan Brown as the local cowboy cop who is a crack shot with wit and with a shotgun and Shane Jacobson as a very ocker truckie. Throw in the on-going debate between Holdens and Fords (cars) and the use of The Wiggles as a form of musical torture and this rounds out the totally Australian feel to the movie.

Raw, gritty and compelling, many questions are left unanswered as Cactus slowly works its way to a conclusion that might leave some wanting more answers and others happy to draw their own conclusions.

Rating : ***

Christina Bruce