The Hard Word (2002)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

Scott Roberts

Writer:

Scott Roberts (writer)

Release Date:

27 June 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

All It Takes Is A Little Persuasion

Plot:

Three fraternal bank robbers languishing in jail, discover a profitable (if not dodgy) way to spend their time...

Plot Keywords:

Sex | Nurse | Waitress | Escape | Australia

Awards:

5 wins & 8 nominations

Cast

Guy Pearce	...	Dale
Rachel Griffiths	...	Carol
Robert Taylor	...	Frank
Joel Edgerton	...	Shane
Damien Richardson	...	Mal
Rhondda Findleton	...	Jane
Kate Atkinson	...	Pamela
Vince Colosimo	...	Kelly
Paul Sonkkila	...	O'Riordan
Kim Gyngell	...	Paul
Dorian Nkono	...	Tarzan
Stephen Whittaker	...	Rawson
Torquil Neilson	...	Mick
Don Bridges	...	Doug
Doug Bowles	...	Bill

Also Known As:

Blood and Guts (Australia) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence, language, sexuality and brief drug use.

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

Australia | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Cinevex)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

South Korea:18 | USA:TV-MA (cable rating) | Australia:MA | Canada:14A | Germany:16 | Singapore:PG (cut) | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Company:

Alibi Films

Quotes:

Carol Twentyman: I thought you liked me being a tart.
Dale Twentyman: I like you being my tart.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Daily Show: (2003-06-09)" (2003)

Entertainingly different, Guy Pearce shines

One of those films I found myself liking a lot, but it's difficult to say exactly why. The Hard Word has a little bit of everything going at once - heist film, love story, comedy, and drama. It could be (and was) marketed as a thriller about lowlife criminals, double crosses and crime not paying - in other words an obvious Australian-style Tarantino rip-off like the boring and derivative "Two Hands". However it seems to take its cues more from the kind of slower paced, character-based crime movies that were popular from the 70's.

Often movies like this one choose style over substance, and skitter along on simplistic scripts and dumb dialogue. Not the case here at all-The Hard Word has enough going in both departments to keep you more than interested and entertained, a credit to writer/director Scott Roberts. The music in this film is also worth mentioning - it's very good and matches the style of the film perfectly.

What makes the movie special is an amazing, low-key performance from Guy Pearce, whose talent becomes more evident every time he graces the screen. Playing one of three incorrigible but non-violent bank robbing brothers, he manages to make his character watchable, interesting and original. Co-star Rachel Griffiths plays his sneaky, trashy, two-timing wife; her performance is not quite up to Pearce's, but doesn't do anything to weigh the film down, and most of the other actors are top-notch.

I don't think this film did much business in the US (yet another indie that probably played on about three screens and no one heard about), but I predict it will find an audience on video and could even become a bona fide cult classic.