The Film Ferret: The Square (2008)

Director: Nash Edgerton
Producer: Louise Smith
Main Cast: David Roberts, Claire van der Boom, Peter Phelps, Bill Hunter
Runtime: 105 minutes

Thought I would review something a little different for Noirvember. The usual country of origin that comes to mind when “Noir” is mentioned is usually U.S.A. primarily because of those classic 40’s and 50’s films and of course the numerous Neo Noir from the 60’s onwards, however what if Australia made a neo noir? The movie in mini-review today is an Aussie crack at neo noir and to be honest its really good!

Filmed in and around Sydney (Sutherland Shire primarily), Raymond (David Roberts) and Carla (Claire van der Boom) are having a secret affair. One afternoon Carla sees her husband with a bag of drug money and plans with her secret lover to steal the cash and runaway to a place where they can live freely together…. happily ever after. But as always nothing goes quite to plan and slowly they start digging themselves deeper and deeper into trouble.

The above screenshot really explains the story and title of this great Aussie flic, a man being trapped in a box where each direction he looks feels like a dead end with no way out. This great movie is really similar to the likes of Fargo and is neo noir through and through. Considering this is Nash Edgerton’s first feature film it is one heck of a crack and well worth watching but I must say that there is a bit of swearing in the movie so take note. Its not over the top but still prevalent but that aside it is a really good movie if you like films similar in nature to Fargo (1996), Get Carter (1971), Harry Brown (2009), Payback (1999) sort of flavour.

I managed to snag one of the two-disc special edition DVD’s which you can still get (JB-Hifi and eBay) and is really the best version to get cause its loaded with extras should you wish to delve a bit deeper into the movie. There is no Bluray release.

The image is in a 2.35:1 aspect ratio and has good image quality though its not as sharp as many other modern movies, perhaps intentionally or due to type of filming equipment (shot on 16mm film as opposed to digital). The audio comes in the usual Dolby Digital 5.1 flavour and sounds good with clear dialogue. The 2-disc DVD also comes with the following extras: