From Australia comes this very well written and acted, tense drama that is particularly attuned to our times – the recently noted role of the police force involved in criminal activity and brutality. Written by actor Joel Edgerton who also stars this is storytelling on the first order – well worth viewing and pondering.
The concept behind the film is the inner workings of the police force, both old timers such as Detective Carl Summer (a brilliant performance by Tom Wilkinson), hard working detectives like Malcolm Toohey (Joel Edgerton) who happen to make mistakes after having celebrated with booze a recent traumatic arrest, and a newcomer to the force Jim Melic (Jai Courtney is a very sensitive portrayal). Though the focus is on an accidental hit and run between Toohey and a bicycle riding youngster following a checkpoint where Toohey (who has been drinking is stopped by local police but not held because he is a fellow cop) calls for help but decides to cover-up his part in the encounter, the other two cops are at equal crossroads: Summer tells Toohey to fabricate a story to prevent his being arrested for hit and run, a fact that Summer's new ride along partner Melic cannot justify and seeks the mother of the injured child (Sarah Roberts) to console her. As the tension mounts and the youngster's situation deteriorates and so do the lives of these three detectives. Despite Toohey's wife (Melissa George) encouraging him not to tell the truth as well as Summer's insistence that for the safety of the force and the three cops Toohey maintain his fabricated story, Toohey is ridden with guilt and begins to change his mind about the incident and his involvement. Summer is intolerant of Toohey's weakness and in a struggle Melic (who has made an indecent advance to the child's mother despite his extending support for her) brutally assaults Summer resulting in brain damage. All three cops must walk that thin line between truth and fiction and the effect that truth will have on their careers.
At times the Australian accents are tough to understand but that is a very minor point. This is a beautifully scripted, conceived, photographed and acted film that should be high on everyone's list of top films of the year.
