Cinema Review: The Rover


Posted July 31, 2014 in Cinema Reviews

The Rover

Director: David Michôd

Talent: Guy Pearce, Robert Pattinson, Scoot McNairy, David Field

Release Date: 15th August 2014

After an unspecified “collapse”, society lies in tatters. In an anachronistic Wild West, a man travels across the country hunting down the band who stole his car. This is Mad Max with no heroes, and no hope. It’s feral and punctuated by shocking, visceral violence and yet director David Michôd shows himself capable of real cinematic artistry.

It’s certainly no a perfect film: sometimes you sense that this is two A-list Hollywood actors showcasing rather than consolidating the actual roles. Pattinson especially may have bitten off a little more than he can chew but it’s an admirable effort all the same.

There’s something interesting about the best Australian films (The Proposition, Wake in Fright): here, violence is a signifier of doom and lost hope rather than a product of it. It serves to highlight the country’s harsh, ungovernable terrain and how this has informed the cultural identity. It is exaggerated reality as the ultimate anti-jingoism. In that way the director enters a tradition of filmmaking of which The Rover is a worthy, if not always phenomenal, addition.

Words: Eoghain Meakin

For more cinema coverage this month, check out our reviews of:

Hector and the Search for Happiness, The Dawn Of The Planet Of The ApesBoyhoodThe Grand SeductionSupermensch: The Legend of Shep GordonGrand CentralFinding Vivian Maier & Joe

Cirillo’s

NEWSLETTER

The key to the city. Straight to your inbox. Sign up for our newsletter.