arunkendall
Oh dear. That this was written and directed by someone - Ben Elton - that I used to love and admire so much is bitterly disappointing. It has all the hallmarks of a twee, naive Australian comedy that can be done entertainingly - witness "The Castle" or "Muriel's Wedding" - but is more often than not a cringe-worthy embarrassment filled with poor dialogue, manufactured awkward script and atrocious acting.Ben Elton is for me the man who saved Blackadder - his input into Series 2 lifted the show and who displayed socially progressive views early in his career, but this bloated, embarrassing thief of time is indicative of how far Elton has fallen. I can't fault the actors: they had such appalling dialogue I swear I could see in their eyes a fear and horror that their careers could be over as the words left their lips.I am fully supportive of the themes in the film - the need for kindness and compassion in society, taking care of refugees and supporting Aboriginal land rights but the absolute lack of subtlety and the preaching smarmy way these things were delivered made me recoil.
xtremeweather
I loved this movie! I loved the romance and the fact that it was set at the festival over 3 years. That was quite different. I loved the key messages about diversity in the community and celebrating our differences.
Ajay_z
I think Ben Elton nailed it in this movie about attendees returning to a large folk festival, Westival, held annually in W.A. The audience were reacting with out-loud laughs and even applauding at the end. The script was well written and Magda Subanski as the local radio announcer was superb. The characterisations were exaggerated but, I thought, honest, and anyone who likes camping or caravanning will have come across these exact people at times, although perhaps not in the guise of Morris Dancers with Michael Caton as their leader. It covered romance, bigotry, racism and refugees but in such a way as to be inoffensive. The musical score was also very good even if you aren't a fan of the theremin..
Joyhouse99
Over three years, the same people attend a music festival Westival, staged in rural outback Western Australia and during this time relationships change and evolve. The main storyline concentrates on the love story between Keevy (Rebecca Breeds), a down to earth pub band fiddler, and theremin player Roland (Robert Sheehan), together they meet at the festival. Roland encourages Keevy to apply to a music conservatorium which causes great drama, especially with Keevy's father played by John Waters. There are great supporting characters in the film, such as Michael Caton, who plays a racist and Magda Szubanski who is the community radio announcer and Deborah Mailman who plays a therapist who runs the festival's Alcoholics Anonymous sessions. As a secondary storyline, the film concentrates on some aspects of contemporary Australian society such as the plight of refugees left in unlimited detention and the problems some Aboriginals experience in their communities. The film was beautifully shot, capturing the beautiful Aussie outback in rural Western Australia. It also ticked all the boxes which is a good step forward in terms of diversity, portraying Multicultural Australia in film. My only question is, "Did the filmmaker concentrate on ticking all the boxes more so than creating a more organic storyline?" Ben Elton says, "The idea for Three Summers came about during one of my family trips to the Fairbridge Folk Festival in WA. I was sitting in the bar tent doing some people watching, there's such a rich tapestry of humanity at these sorts of family music events and so much comedy. People from different walks of life suddenly living in a field together with only sheets of canvas and polyester between them. Everybody's equal in the queue for the portaloos!"Three Summers' Aussie soundtrack includes tracks by Little Birdy, Dan Sultan, the John Butler Trio, Xavier Rudd, Gotye, Sarah Blasko , Dr. G. Yunupingu and many more.The Run time 102 minutes6.5/10
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