Sydney Film Festival has just announced it’s opening night entertainment – a prestigious spot at the 63rd annual celebration – and it comes in the form of Goldstone.
A world premiere for the ‘outback noir’ film, director Ivan Sen wanted to “offer something special” to the festival at his second opening night for the event; a big ask after 2013’s award-winning release of Mystery Road. Sen’s film will be screened at the State Theatre at 7:30pm, Wednesday 8th of June; kicking off two weeks of cinematic festivities.
Goldstone brings back the troubled detective first introduced in Mystery Road, Jay Swan (Aaron Pederson), and includes a cast consisting of Jacki Weaver, David Wenham, David Gulpilil, Cheng Pei-pei, Michelle Lim Davidson and Tom E. Lewis.
Sen stated: “From experience, we know the Sydney Film Festival opening night is a very special screening here in Australia. Goldstone is about us, and our cultural crossroads. The first screening of the film anywhere in the world will be here, at home in our country, on country, where it should be.”
As an Indigenous writer and director focusing on the issues such as cultural destruction, the film promises to be as intriguing and politically loaded as its predecessor – with Sen reigniting his artful rendition of the remote outback in the settlement of Middleton (population 3), Queensland.
Festival Director Nashen Moodley said of the film that it “is a complex and layered work that comes together brilliantly in Ivan Sen’s signature outback noir style,” as indicated by its complex weaving of Australia’s scarred past with its contemporary present.
Instead of Murder, Goldstone offers a storyline focused on a missing persons case; Swan finding himself caught up in with larger forces as his search brings him to the mining town as named in the title. Begrudgingly joining forces with the young and spirited Josh (Alex Russel) of the local police force, the two must come together to uncover the dark truth of what’s really going on.
Intense, stylish, and as gritty as the outback itself, Goldstone promises a thoughtful and compelling watch; with its encompassing of true Australian setting coupled with the upfront exploration of environment, corporate greed, tradition and mythology – it’s seems to be a perfect fit for the opening of the Australian festival.
Goldstone is distributed through Transmission Films and will have a national theatrical release on Thursday 30th June.
