Animal Kingdom

Like many Australians I am very dubious about the quality of Australian films. In fact, more often than not the sheer mention of the fact a movie is Australian made pretty much turns me off. As such I'm only ever remotely inclined to watch an Aussie film if it comes with a lot of positive buzz. Animal Kingdom was one such film, with everyone (albeit only a small number of people) who had seen it raving about it. 
 
First and foremost is it a well constructed and carefully paced film. The characters in the movie are played well by everyone involved. When I first heard that it was a crime drama, I thought that this was going to be in the vein of the hugely successful "Underbelly" series, but it was refreshing not at all about organised crime. It is the sort of story that largely could have been set in any country, it is not uniquely Australian in its themes, and thankfully there was no perceived need by the filmmakers to "Ocker" it up to pull the Australiana through more strongly. 
 
It is a strong film that holds up well on its own, and for an industry so lacking in quality it is most definitely a breath of fresh air to see a good Australian film for a change. It didn't blow me away like some people have been saying, but certainly for an Australian film it is the sort of movie worth picking up on DVD on a quiet evening.