Movie review: Snowtown (2011)

Directed by Justin Kurzel
Starring Lucas Pittaway, Daniel Henshall

Reviewed by Tony Owens

Jamie Vlassakis lives with his mum and two brothers in one of Adelaide's northern suburbs. His mother's new boyfriend, John Bunting, looks to be a stabilising influence on the family and especially on Jamie. A father figure to look up to and respect perhaps. He is a charismatic man and soon endears himself to the boys. It quickly becomes apparent though that Bunting is not a man to be messed with. He has an intense hatred of homosexuals, paedophiles, drug use and obesity. Gradually Jamie is drawn into a world of torture, murder and social security fraud.
Snowtown is based partly on Debi Marshall's book Killing for Pleasure, which delved into the famous 'bodies-in-barrels' murders in the late 1990s. These crimes have become a kind of shorthand with which to paint Adelaide as the weird murder capital of Australia. The book was a disturbing, yet thorough investigation into the crimes themselves, the police investigation and possible motivations of the killers. The film focuses on the toxic relationship between Bunting and Vlassakis and shows a damning picture of a permanent underclass besieged by unemployment, broken families, welfare dependency and child abuse.
The two leads, Lucas Pittaway as Jamie and Daniel Henshall as John, are both excellent in their roles. The supporting cast is remarkable being made up of a mixture of professionals and locals with no acting experience.
It's a difficult film to watch and at the preview screening I attended there were a few walkouts. While the film does include several intense scenes of violence, it is quite restrained when one considers the extent of the crimes that were actually committed. This may pose a dilemma for the producers in that it may struggle to find an audience. It could be too restrained and slow for a more mainstream audience looking for thrills and high body counts. On the other hand, it may prove too brutal for more refined tastes. It'll be interesting to see what kind of business it does.
The other vexing question is does this constitute exploitation? I don't think so. It's a serious attempt to show how a society that leaves people behind may end up creating monsters like John Bunting. I recommend it highly. But be warned, it is confronting.
Snowtown opens in Australian cinemas on May 19.