Blessed (2009)

83% of critics liked it
(12 reviews)
73% of users liked it
(637 ratings)

The actions of a handful of troubled young people are seen from two different perspectives in this drama from Australian filmmaker Ana Kokkinos. Daniel (Harrison Gilbertson) has a combative relationship with his parents and acts out by stealing; when challenged by his mother, he breaks into a… More The actions of a handful of troubled young people are seen from two different perspectives in this drama from Australian filmmaker Ana Kokkinos. Daniel (Harrison Gilbertson) has a combative relationship with his parents and acts out by stealing; when challenged by his mother, he breaks into a neighbor's house and accidentally causes the death of an elderly woman. Orton (Reef Ireland) has run away from home and is stranded in the big city; his younger sister Stacey (Eva Lazzaro) finds him living in a clothing donation box, where she shares with him stories of abuse at the hand's of their mom's lovers. Katrina (Sophie Lowe) and Trisha (Anastasia Baboussouras) are bored and aimless kids who turn to alcohol and petty theft to pass the time. And Trisha's brother Roo (Eamon Farren), who has recently embraced his homosexuality, is approached by a photographer who says the young man could have a future in modeling, not knowing he primarily deals in pornography. As we follow these teenagers over the course of twenty-four hours, we next also witness the same span of time as it was experienced by their mothers, in particular Bianca (Miranda Otto), a gambling addict who seems more like a sibling than a parent to her daughter Katrina, and Rhonda (Frances O'Connor), a single mother struggling with poverty and bad choices who will soon have to deal with a new baby as well as Orton and Stacey. Blessed was adapted from the play Who's Afraid Of The Working Class, with playwrights Andrew Bovell, Melissa Reeves, Patricia Cornelius and Christos Tsiolkas penning the screenplay. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 55 min.
Directed By: Ana Kokkinos
Written By: Andrew Bovell, Christos Tsiolkas, Melissa Reeves, Patricia Cornelius
Genres: Drama

In Theaters: Sep 10, 2009 Wide
On DVD: Aug 11, 2009

Critic Reviews

Ruth Hessey, MovieTime, ABC Radio National
Some fine talent manages to rise above flimsy scenarios in this multi-thread expose of low-rent Melbourne mothering and its bitter legacy. Surely the whole truth would call for some rays of light in these shabby lives?
Matthew Pejkovic, Matt's Movie Reviews
A tad bloated and uncompromisingly bleak, Blessed is buoyed by its impressive ensemble cast.
Thomas Caldwell, Cinema Autopsy
Blessed is uneven and overall not as good as Kokkinos's other films but it nevertheless contains some of her best work to date.
Amber Wilkinson, Eye for Film
A slow-burning, emotionally haunting film that thrusts the bond between mother and child under a microscope.
Philippa Hawker, The Age (Australia)
Blessed is a rich, unsettling vision of the mother-child relationship, By the end, it is clear that things are not always as they seem. Sometimes it's a reversal of expectations, sometimes an unpredictable consequence.
Giles Hardie, Unknown2
Blessed's relentless melodrama means the situations feel staged and stereotypical and both the mothers and children for the most part become painful, charmless annoyances who we want to go home to avoid.
David Stratton, At the Movies (Australia)
Kokkinos is never backward in confronting her audience, but she's also a sensitive portrayer of emotions that are basic to us all and with this marvellous film she has created her best work so far.
Des Partridge, Courier Mail (Australia)
Blessed is a powerful and truthful movie experience that lingers long after the end.
Annette Basile, FILMINK (Australia)
Skilfully woven together, the separate tales that eventually intersect portray a touching look at the relationship between mothers and children.
Simon Jones, Empire Magazine Australasia
Brilliant performances and Kokkinos' assured direction result in another strong local production.
Andrew L. Urban, Urban Cinefile
Blessed with cinematic ambition, Ana Kokkinos and her writing collaborators have forged a striking film out of pain and dysfunction, yet managing to pull out a serene sense of closure in the final moments.
Louise Keller, Urban Cinefile
Ana Kokkinos has made an exquisitely and brutally powerful film about the indestructible but fragile thread that connects mothers and children.

Read all 12 critic reviews

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

Dean M

Should you see this achingly performed, firmly directed Australian drama about mothers and their offspring experiencing 24 hours of, largely, bad stuff? Yes, if your tolerance for sombre, sobering close-to-the-bone local cinema hasn't fractured. No, if you're just going to… More
Should you see this achingly performed, firmly directed Australian drama about mothers and their offspring experiencing 24 hours of, largely, bad stuff? Yes, if your tolerance for sombre, sobering close-to-the-bone local cinema hasn't fractured. No, if you're just going to give it all that about how the interweaving, multi-character observation can be simplistically gambling, substance abuse, racism and homelessness. Seeing events first from the children's perspective, before getting the maternal view. Based on the play <i>Who's Afraid of the Working Class?</i>, the stage origins are invisible. It's a fine script, director Ann Kokkinos is a master storyteller, and the performances are phenomenal. Deborra-Lee Furness brings her steady inner energy to her motherly role, Miranda Otto lives inside her character's head, and the young members of the cast all hold their own. It's unfair to play favourites, but Frances O'Connor's Rhonda - the runaway siblings' mother - is exceptional. At first look, the pregnant, smoking, tattooed Rhonda is a cliche, but O'Connor quickly makes her real.
Panta O

Well, it's hard to find anything blessed about the lives in this Australian drama. The writers have woven a whole bunch of stories together from children and mothers viewpoints and every one of those stories is adding to the hard and dark atmosphere of the movie. Social study… More
Well, it's hard to find anything blessed about the lives in this Australian drama. The writers have woven a whole bunch of stories together from children and mothers viewpoints and every one of those stories is adding to the hard and dark atmosphere of the movie. Social study which is depressing but truethful... Very good acting and the directing improved in the second part of the film... Typical Aussie movie!