Nitram

"Nitram" is a psychological drama film based on the events leading up to the 1996 Port Arthur Massacre in Tasmania. Directed by Justin Kurzel ("Snowtown", "True History Of The Kelly Gang") and starring Caleb Landry Jones, Anthony Lapaglia, Judy Davis, and Essie Davis, it is a disturbing film about one of the darkest days in Australian history.

In the 1990s, the mentally disturbed Nitram (Caleb Landry Jones) lives with his parents (Anthony LaPaglia and Judy Davis) in the suburbs of Hobart, Tasmania. Because of his lack of social skills and bizarre behaviour, Nitram is alienated from everyone around him, including his own family. One day, Nitram meets a reclusive woman named Helen (Essie Davis) after offering to mow her lawn and the two end up forming a close, platonic friendship. To the shock of Nitram's parents, Helen is supportive of their son's unsettling nature, believing him to be misunderstood. A short time later, Nitram and Helen's relationship abruptly ends which further plunges his mental state into darkness, resulting in horrific repercussions.

Even to this day, the 1996 mass shooting in Port Arthur remains Australia's deadliest massacre to be committed by a single person, resulting in the deaths of 35 people. In its aftermath, the federal government passed a law that restricted gun ownership across the entire country, with over 643,000 firearms voluntarily handed in to be destroyed. At the centre of all this was of course the perpetrator Martin Bryant, an intellectually challenged young man whose sole motivation for these killings still remain a mystery more than a quarter of a century later. The film "Nitram", which is "Martin" spelled backwards, does a solid job taking into consideration the circumstances this individual lived through, which is a job easier said than done.

This film picks the tricky subject matter of focusing around the life of a psychopath, which when done right can shed an educated light on what makes them tick but when done wrong can glamorise their actions and unintentionally depict them as heroes. There have been various movies made with this plot element, like "American Psycho" and "Taxi Driver", and while each of these films are otherwise great, they unfortunately become associated with unstable viewers who believe the main character did nothing wrong. Where I think "Nitram" succeeds the most is that it only ever shows the negative consequences of what the title character does throughout the movie.

For example, something Nitram sees as fun is veering a car into oncoming traffic by pulling on the steering wheel from the front passenger's seat. Because of his inability to distinguish between right and wrong, Nitram laughs hysterically at the driver's fear and is later upset when scolded for what he has done. Any sane person watching will realise that this is an extremely dangerous act that could result in their deaths and I think even the most socially isolated member of the film's audience could understand that anyone who does this is not a hero. Additionally, Nitram also lets off fireworks in the front yard of his house early in the morning, prompting fury from his neighbours. No matter how rejected from society someone is, it doesn't take a genius to figure out that this person is deranged and should be viewed as a serious problem.

In continuing his penchant for directing films about murderers, Justin Kurzel follows suit with yet another interesting feature that delves into the psyche of an infamous killer. What's clever is that Kurzel appears to liken Nitram's isolation from the rest of society to that of the state of Tasmania being geographically isolated from mainland Australia. He often shows Nitram driving alone through vast empty roads overlooking the ocean, as if he is calling out for a connection to regular people in his own demented ways. That's not to say Kurzel wants us all to feel sorry for a mass murderer, instead it seems more like he wishes for us to see how difficult it is for someone like him to acquire the help he desperately needs when everything is so far out of reach. Because of that, we gain a better understanding when we eventually see how his deplorable crimes play out the way they do.

There aren't too many depictions of a real-life murderer that have chilled me as much as how Caleb Landry Jones has portrayed him here. In addition to strongly resembling the actual Martin Bryant, Jones also cleverly mirrors the body language and mannerisms that one would expect to see in a true psychopath. I've only seen small amounts of footage of Bryant in a police interview but judging by what was there, Jones has clearly done his research as he nails every visual cue necessary to give a convincing performance of the notorious killer. To my surprise, Jones is actually an American actor playing an Australian character in an Australian film. This is an especially rare occurrence and it is even more rare to see him use such a flawless Australian accent that he even fooled an actual Australian like me. Usually I can pick a fake Australian accent right away but Jones blends in so perfectly with everyone else that he may as well be an Aussie.

Worth mentioning as well are Anthony LaPaglia and Judy Davis as Nitram's parents. Credited only as "Dad" and "Mum", likely to avoid association with Bryant's real parents, I particularly liked how the film touched upon their conflicting views on how they should raise their son. "Dad" clearly is more liberal in how he handles his son's strange behaviour, believing that if he allows some of the weirdness to slide that Nitram will eventually feel better about himself. On the other hand, "Mum" shows that she once had a more authoritarian way of stopping her son from acting out but has seemingly given up due to him never learning from his mistakes. It is these polar opposite parental techniques that likely helped exacerbate Nitram's twisted mental state, leading him to commit mass murder.

Essie Davis, who is also the wife of Justin Kurzel, does an equally great job as Helen, a wealthy woman who forms an unlikely friendship with Nitram. Her reclusive nature and inability to connect with other people is the common ground they share so it makes for some fascinating interactions with one another. At the same time, it can be frustrating to see her ignore the warning signs that Nitram is not right in the head but according to some research, this is what the real Helen was like. Without giving away spoilers, it is sad to see what happens to her in the end, though it certainly didn't come as a surprise all things considered.

Although I believe the film is successful in what it was trying to say, I need to be very careful as to whom I recommend it to. As mentioned above, it would be easy for any disturbed person to put on a film like this and begin to idolise the killer for their actions, treating them as a martyr of sorts. Bearing that in mind, I'd say that people with the correct mindset should see this with the understanding that these individuals are mentally unwell and need to be treated as such. Regardless of how bad someone may feel for a killer like Martin Bryant/Nitram, nothing justifies the murder of 35 innocent people and my deepest condolences go out to the victims' families who are still hurting all these years since such an evil act.

I rate it 8/10.