Lantana ★★★ 2001 (R) This impressive Aussie thriller starts off as a seemingly straightforward murder mystery, but that's only the jumping-off point. The burned-out cop, Leon (LaPaglia) investigating the murder, is cheating on his wife with a woman, Jane (Blke), who may know something about the case. His wife is consulting a psychiatrist, Valerie (Hershey), whose marriage to John (Rush) has been damaged by the murder of their 11-year-old daughter. John may also be having a homosexual affair with one of his wife's patients. Jane's neighbors, Nik (Colosimo) and Paula (Farinacci) seem like the only happy ones in the mix, but they, too, are touched by the mystery. LaPaglia stands out in a brilliant cast, and the deep character studies and attention to detail add dimension to what could have been a standard whodunit. 120m/C VHS, DVD, Wide. AU Anthony LaPaglia, Kerry Armstrong, Geoffrey Rush, Barbara Hershey, Rachael Blake, Vince Colosimo, Peter Phelps, Daniela Farinacci, Leah Purcell, Glenn Robbins;
Director:
Ray Lawrence;
Writer:
Andrew Bovell;
Writer:
Mandy Walker;
Cameo:
Paul Kelly. Australian Film Inst. '01: Actor (LaPaglia), Actress (Armstrong), Adapt. Screenplay, Director (Lawrence), Film, Support. Actor (Colosimo), Support. Actress (Blake).
