Country: Australia / USA
Movie Review: Set 10 years after a global collapse, in a desolated arid town in Australia, “The Rover”, is a natural follow-up to David Michod’s amazing debut feature, “Animal Kingdom”. The austere, dark tones and aggressive scenes are pretty familiar, composing the irrational story filled with irrational characters, but in terms of plot it turned out to be a bit disconnected. Eric (Guy Pierce) is the man we follow; solitary, mournful and with violent past, he goes after three men who stole his car after a failed robbery attempt. The search along the torrid Australian landscape takes him to weird places with even weirder people. Unable to know their whereabouts, he has the fortune of bumping into Rey (Robert Pattinson), the wounded brother of one of the fugitives, remorselessly left behind by his companions. This awkward young man revealed not to be so bad natured and a bond of trust is established between the two. Despite the imminent danger that could be felt, some of the contemplative shots along with occasional action, lacked the expression needed to make “The Rover” a riveting experience. I wasn’t totally immune to its blend of dark crime and drama, in the same way that I wasn’t completely convinced of its unlikely relationship of trust and post-apocalyptic story. Only in the final moments, emotionally intense, I was able to be alert and get my eyes wide open for what was going on. I would say that this finale almost saves the film, however, I felt I needed something more.
