Inside

In cold, hard Aussie prison drama "Inside" teenage Vincent Miller ages out of juvie into adult prison, celling respectively with oddball Cosmo Jarvis (doing life for a notorious heinous crime) & grizzled Guy Pearce (nearing parole but with debts to be paid). On his debut, writer / director Charles Williams plays out a gritty tale of trauma, anger, guilt, resignation, & redemption that avoids sensationalism to come across authentic - helped by terrific performances from Miller (also on his movie debut), the top drawer duo of Jarvis & Pearce, and support from the likes of Toby Wallace. It's a tough, bleak watch... but a worthy one, particularly for fans of the prison drama genre.

The trailer made this seem a pretty compelling viewing, but it is rather dull and though the plot is not quite predictable, it doesn't wander too far from where you expect it might go. The performances of the three leads are first rate and the supporting cast is strong. I suspect it's a reasonable snapshot of contemporary prison life and the difficulties of both the inmates and the impact of institutionalisation. The unspoken narrative on the frailties of the human condition are well captured too. Perhaps I'm being a little harsh as a critic... I think I went into it expecting too much and found myself let down.

Guy Pearce could be in the worst film imaginable and still put in one of the best performances of the human condition.

Inside is truly something to go and watch, for the emotional depth and an experience that stays with you way after you left the theatre.

The human spirit, the craft and the story truly makes this a movie that will do so well in the future and may become a sleeper hit.

I hope there is a much wider release for this film as it is gripping, emotionally draining and a film I would recommend someone to watch at least once.

It was also good to see some familiar faces in Tammy Macintosh, Guy Pearce and Chloe Hayden.

Proving once more that Australian cinema does gritty as well as anyone else, Charles Williams feature debut Inside is a notably intense local offering that draws out memorable performances from its trio of talented performers, Guy Pearce, international import and Shogun breakout star Cosmo Jarvis and newcomer Vincent Miller.

An unflinching look at prison life and those that inhabit the walls of similar institutions around the world, there's a lot of familiar ingredients to Inside, such is the nature of any prison set movie/series, but Williams infuses his tale of Miller's Mel moving from a juvenile detention centre to an adult prison with enough unique ideas and sensibilities that helps ensure Inside has enough fresh ideas to give viewers something to engage with.

A bleak affair that doesn't offer up any glimmers of reprieve as Mel becomes acquainted with Jarvis's unhinged inmate/preacher Mark Shepard and Pearce's jaded and close to release Warren Murfett, Inside is an intense watch across its 100 minutes and while not all of its story beats or story arcs culminate or evolve as well as you're hoping for initially, there's a quiet power to this tale and the performances within in it.

Suggesting that he is going to be a homegrown talent to keep an eye on, Miller does some noteworthy work as the softly spoken and inwardly tormented Mel.

Holding his own against the well-known talents of Pearce and the growing repertoire of Jarvis who continues to redefine himself as a performer, Miller is the heart and soul of Inside as a young man given little hope or support battles to understand his identity and to understand how a life outside of the prison walls would look for him.

With Miller making his mark he's only overshadowed by the fact Pearce continues to be one of the industries most undervalued actors and that Jarvis is becoming one of the industries most interesting.

Both actors are on top notch form here and give Inside an added gravitas that should appeal to an international audience when their able to find and watch this film for themselves.

Overall Inside is an impressively polished and delivered debut feature from Williams.

Showcasing a keen eye and restraint behind the camera and an ability to work with performers both young and old, based off this it's highly likely that we are seeing the early flames of a bright directional career ahead for our Australian filmmaker.

Final Say -

It doesn't break any new ground but Inside is a top quality local production with a string of stirring performances, making it one of the best Australian features of the last few years all the while announcing Vincent Miller and Charles Williams as future stars of the Aussie film landscape.

3 1/2 swiss army knives out of 5.

This was beautiful storytelling of a rotten situation... Broken people..so epically well cast. Nuance, use of silence and awkward situations. I was tense. I cried on my way home from the cinema. I'll probably watch again. There's not much recommending prison for young offenders. You see the effects of trauma and brutality.. the righteous, "you've made bad choices"... There was no choices for these discarded people. ... Brilliant movie.

Guy Pearce acting was good as a confident but not cocky repeat offender. You never know if he's genuine or a good manipulator. The actor playing the young man protagonist is awesome with his 'innocent' fear all over his face.