Review: The Proposition

Seeing David Gulpilil in a movie just makes me smile. Even if he’s just playing a bit part like he does in The Proposition. Of course, having the prolific aboriginal actor in the movie isn’t the only smart move David Hillcoat makes, and I’m happy to say that The Proposition not only does justice to a pretty astute script by Nick Cave, but exceeds any expectations I may have had for it.

Essentially the story of an outlaw who has been spared in order to kill his own brother, The Proposition has all the hallmarks of a great film: excellent acting, a fantastic script, a compelling story, and superior editing and directing. The sparse dialog and the sparseness of the Australian outback readily complement each other, and the physical horrors that the film portrays quite impressively expresses the harshness of the life of the early Australian settler. But the true genius of The Proposition is not in the story elements, but in the cinematography. Benoit Delhomme crafts every scene as if he was taking a photograph, with exquisite attention to perspective, color, and depth of field. Indeed, any frame from this film could be extracted and turned into an award winning photo, and it is for this reason alone that The Proposition skyrockets into my list of top films of the year.