Last Cab to Darwin (2015)

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

I have never met an Australian I didn't like. I have a soft spot in my heart for the country and its people. Seems more and more the Australian film industry has been creating true gems when it comes to movies. Wonderful actors too. This film is another example. A simple man in a small town drives a taxi. He knows everyone in town and they know him. He learns the surgery he had to remove his cancer was unsuccessful and is rapidly spreading. Prognosis. Two to three months. He learns that euthanasia has been made legal in the Northern territory with a doctor in Darwin being an advocate. Darwin is 3,000 kilometers by car so our intrepid Aussie decides to drive his cab to Darwin. Thus begins his journey through the Australian outback. The scenery alone makes the film worth watching. Couldn't help my heart feeling for the gentleman. Wish my country made movies with half as much heart and honesty. As an old guy myself with health issues I sympathized. Well worth watching.

'Last Cab to Darwin' is a contemporary Australian film based on a true story, released in 2015. The story is set in the Northern Territory, and it is ultimately about an aging, terminally-ill, small-town man's journey where he ultimately realises that, after the journey he has taken, undergoing euthanasia is not worth it as he does have someone to care about. It shows Rex in physical pain, living in terrible conditions where he actually feels humiliated by the fact that he needs an indigenous Australian to essentially care for him. I personally think that the main reason why Rex wanted to undergo the procedure is actually because he felt like he was a burden upon Polly. And that by leaving without her consent, he'd be giving her relief from having to care for a man who can't even clean his own mess, but in the end he realises that Polly would do absolutely anything for him – and that he was the one who deserved his final time.This is how the filmmakers address the universal issue that we all face every day – possibility opposing practicality. Where when you're actually living the moment, you might go back upon your original idea. I think the movie does an amazing job of describing this, and I feel that is also the direction of the argument of Euthanasia itself, everything is uncertain when one has to make a decision that serious. I myself am terrified of the thought of death, in-fact I can't even begin to comprehend it, but although I can never see myself going through euthanasia, I can imagine that in certain circumstances some people would, which is how where I think the filmmakers stand on the topic – and they definitely do make the subjective benefits known. So I feel like there will never be a final decision made on the debate, and that's exactly what I think the ultimate message of this movie is – because in the end, even Dr Farmer had given-up. I would say this film was probably one of the most beautiful movies I have seen in the respect of the power and beauty of the relationship between Polly and Rex. The wonderful idea of breaking the 'taboo' upon being associated with an indigenous Australian in the Northern Territory, let-alone leading a relationship. The reason why this hits-home for me is because in the Northern Territory there is a very obvious bias against the indigenous Australians. I recall seeing many places where Aborigines were restricted without identification, even at the campsite parallel to the iconic bar with photos plastered upon the walls had regulations like this. So to see two people breaking these barriers was a very confronting, but beautiful image. Beautiful imagery is something this great movie is full-of, whether it be depicting the often buried idea of alcoholism among Aborigines, the impact that people can have on one-another, or even just the landscape of Australia itself. Which is something I would like to finish upon, the setting of this movie proved almost nostalgic for me in a sense, I feel the filmmakers truly captured how I see Australia as a whole. In the morning at Rex's house I felt like I could even smell the scent of the morning wet grass under the unforgiving Australian sun, and re-live the sense of wonder that I felt when entering Alice Springs between the monolithic rock formations. This movie was a perfect depiction of how I truly see Australia, and for that I think I will always remember it.

There was no need for this movie to be two hours long, and I was squirming by the end, couldn't wait for it to be over. 1.5 hours would have been long enough.The film had some nice scenery and that's about it. Other than that it was just a collection of stereotypes.Clichéd white ocker Aussie characters using true blue fair dinkum Aussie lingo.Aboriginal characters speaking pidgin English, kind-hearted blackfellas with drinking problems.Outback pubs, lots of Carlton product placement, the whole movie was shot like a beer ad.Contrived relationship between old white man and aboriginal woman. Was that supposed to be anti-racist? The characters were two-dimensional and unconvincing.This movie was a two-hour cringefest and four stars is the absolute maximum I could give it, and it only gets those because it was relatively well-shot and well-produced, and had some amusing moments.

After watching this film with great anticipation, I had a one-word question - WHY ? Why all the great hype ? It's not a great movie.Why all the superlatives ? It does little to address racism as another review claims.Why was it even made ? It wasted a superb opportunity to discuss Australian attitudes to passing, assisted suicide, the ignoring or shrugging of death's finality, and the simple attitude toward life.Why did it lack so much exposition ? Why did it squander the myriads of opportunity to showcase the staggering beauty of this country.Why did it simply take the viewer through a dull series of unfunny, unremarkable & stereotypical discussions, set-pieces and clichés ? Everyone involved in front of the camera, and Jeremy Sims, is capable of so very much more.What a disappointment.