Noise takes place in claustrophobic spaces. There is the train carriage where a lone gunman kills eight passengers, the tiny caravan the police set up in the missing gunman’s neighbourhood, and the constantly darkened home of the film’s antihero. In the aftermath of a tragic train shooting Graham McGahan (Brendan Cowell), a disaffected cop suffering from tinnitus, is posted to a caravan in a suburban shopping strip where the police are looking for the gunman. These close environments reflect Graham’s increasingly interiorised state, as the persistent ringing in his ears and his apathy toward his work draw him inward. The soundtrack works to further pull the audience into Graham’s world – at times the tinnitus drowns out all other sounds and we find ourselves looking blankly at a character’s moving mouth while hearing a high pitched buzz.
Unfortunately, the other characters get lost in the noise, and this is a problem. The event that gives rise to this story is a horrific, violent act and those directly affected by the event, Lavinia (Maia Thomas) and Dean (Luke Elliot), as well as the other police officers are interesting characters. In fact, almost all the other characters in the film seem to be more interesting than the passive, self absorbed Graham. By the end of the film, I didn’t care about him at all. Perhaps he was supposed to be elusive and subtle, but for me, it was another case of the good old passive Australian hero. Really, there is nothing wrong with characters doing something in a film – we watch people not doing things enough in life.
West, on the other hand is full of characters who, despite their circumstances, do act, however grim their actions may be. Pete (Khan Chittenden) and Jerry (Nathan Phillips) are cousins and best friends, who live, drink and smoke together. When Cheryl (Gillian Alexy) bursts onto the scene, both boys lust after her, but after flirting briefly with Pete, she chooses Jerry. Jerry desperately wants out of the suburbs and a life of boozing and drug dealing, so he takes a job at a seedy fast food restaurant. After a run in with the thuggish Kenwood (Anthony Hayes), Pete starts dealing speed as well as dope although he too wants to get out – he just thinks getting a lot of cash quick will be his ticket to freedom. Drugs, alcohol, desire and frustration lead from one disaster to the next, and the boys find themselves drifting further from their goals and each other.
David Stratton of At the Movies, found West somewhat depressing, but despite the tragedy of the events, it is in many ways an uplifting story. Both Pete and Jerry attempt to take control of their lives and change their situation, albeit in different ways. They both desire to leave the suburbs and make something of themselves, but at the same time they are products of their environment – a world that has filled them with a dangerous repressed rage. The storm water drain where they drink and fuck, and where Pete eventually bashes Kenwood to death is a sort of metaphor for their desire for something better – several shots look down the tunnel to the spot of light at the opening, and although this sounds like a cliché, it works.
As characters the boys are believable, warm and likeable. Cheryl is a free spirit, constantly seeking excitement, but by the end she seems to be growing into a responsible adult. Writer-director Daniel Krige knows and loves his characters and draws convincing performances from his cast. Michael Dorman is brilliant as Mick, the stuttering, socially awkward friend who gets randomly hit by a car and is transformed as a result. Dorman also appears in Suburban Mayhem as Rory, and he is a wonderful actor – both loveable and unhinged at the same time.
Both Noise and West came out in 2007, and Noise definitely had the bigger buzz surrounding it. I’m not sure why this was – for me, West is a far better film. See it.
