Bran Nue Dae (2009)

57% of critics liked it
(60 reviews)
53% of users liked it
(4,446 ratings)

In this lively musical comedy drama set in the late '60s, Willie (Rocky McKenzie) is a 16-year-old living in Broome, an Aboriginal community on the western coast of Australia. Willie is an easygoing kid who doesn't ask for much from life beyond enjoying time with his friends and getting a date with… More In this lively musical comedy drama set in the late '60s, Willie (Rocky McKenzie) is a 16-year-old living in Broome, an Aboriginal community on the western coast of Australia. Willie is an easygoing kid who doesn't ask for much from life beyond enjoying time with his friends and getting a date with Rosie (Jessica Mauboy), a pretty girl who attends the same church. But Willie's mother thinks he should be following a more responsible path, and convinces him to transfer to a Catholic boarding school for boys in Perth. It doesn't take long for Willie to run afoul of Father Benedictus (Geoffrey Rush), the school's iron-willed headmaster, and Willie runs away. Stranded in Perth, Willie is befriended by Uncle Tadpole (Ernie Dingo), a streetwise character who lived in Broome as a youngster. Uncle Tadpole offers to help Willie get back home, and they hit the highway, hitchhiking back to Broome and catching rides with a handful of colorful strangers, including Teutonic tourist Slippery (Tom Budge) and flower child Annie (Missy Higgins). But as Willie and Uncle Tadpole make their way across the continent, Father Benedictus is in hot pursuit, determined not to let a truant slip from his grasp. Bran Nue Dae was adapted from the hit stage musical by Jimmy Chi that was a major box-office success and multiple award winner in Australia during the early '90s; the film version received its word premiere at the 2009 Melbourne Film Festival, where it received the Audience Award for Best Film. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: PG-13, 1 hr. 28 min.
Directed By: Rachel Perkins
Written By: Reg Cribb, Rachel Perkins
Genres: Musical & Performing Arts, Comedy

In Theaters: Sep 10, 2010 Limited
Studio: Mayfan

Critic Reviews

Jennie Punter, Globe and Mail
The film is uneven but in a kind of sweet, earnest way.
Peter Howell, Toronto Star
You have to wonder about the film's almost complete portrayal of Aborigines as dim-witted dunderers, dancing fools, thieves and drunks. Whites fare no better. Does the film explode stereotypes, or reinforce them?
Richard Nilsen, Arizona Republic
Bran Nue Dae is an infectiously joyful Australian Aboriginal musical.
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel
Bran Nue Dae is so cute and off-kilter you may wonder how we ever got along without it.
Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor
Geoffrey Rush chews so much scenery that he looks ready to burst.
Patrick Friel, Chicago Reader
This Australian musical-comedy seems like a project for which everyone involved had ideas but no one had veto power.
James Plath, Movie Metropolis
The quirkiest musical I've ever seen, and despite its flaws I enjoyed it.
Katina Vangopoulos, Cut Print Review
It's a Bran Nue Dae for Australian comedy. Enjoyable and satirical; a pleasant surprise.
Simon Miraudo, Quickflix
Bran Nue Dae is so spectacularly cheerful and effervescent it has successfully wrestled my practical criticisms and deemed them irrelevant.
Steve Persall, St. Petersburg Times
Out of left field and Down Under comes Rachel Perkins' musical to surprise viewers, as if a stranger burst into a well-orchestrated song in conversation.
Sean O'Connell, Charlotte Weekly
Comes off as "Moulin Rouge" at half speed, which is more of a compliment than you might imagine.
Sarah Boslaugh, Playback:stl
Instead of being a fount of melody, this film is more of a song desert with exactly one memorable song...
Ted Fry, Seattle Times
The bright colors and vibrant backgrounds ... go a long way in distracting from shortcomings in the story and style of this offhand hybrid.
Justin Strout, Orlando Weekly
Reportedly a popular musical in Australia, though it's difficult to imagine why, Bran Nue Dae is a film adaptation that barely qualifies as either a film or a musical.
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
It's not everyday you see an 'all-talking, all-singing, all-dancing'Aboriginal musical that also boasts Geoffrey Rush as a scenery-chewing priest with a dodgy German accent.
Christopher Lloyd, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
Bran Nue Dae is a kooky, deliriously happy mix of happenstance and broadly-drawn characters who are apt to break into song at any given moment. It's not quite enough for me to recommend, but I'm not unhappy to have seen it.
Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald
Soon, whenever someone launches into a song, you roll your eyes and hope the tune is a short one.
Brian Orndorf, BrianOrndorf.com
A difficult sit for anyone unable to tune into the film's dedication to bootleg turns of plot and characterization, with the whole endeavor starting to feel like a dental drill after the first act.
Kelly Vance, East Bay Express
It's a bit corny and reminiscent of Baz Luhrmann or Julie Taymor's pop fantasies, but we can forgive her.
Frank Wilkins, ReelTalk Movie Reviews
Doesn't hit on all cylinders but features some great original ideas and a bunch of catchy song and dance numbers sure to delight audiences of all ages.

Read all 21 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Dean M

Charmingly Aussie comedy-musical film - thanks to the energy of the music and dance sequences, the colourful vibrancy of Andrew Lesnie's cinematography and the ebullience of the multi-racial cast. Director Rachel Perkins was old on the idea upon seeing the play in the early… More
Charmingly Aussie comedy-musical film - thanks to the energy of the music and dance sequences, the colourful vibrancy of Andrew Lesnie's cinematography and the ebullience of the multi-racial cast. Director Rachel Perkins was old on the idea upon seeing the play in the early '90s, and more than a decade later has worked with Jimmy Chi to bring it to the big screen. And what a fine job she's done. As an Aborigine, Perkin's affinity with the material is clear, and her heritage provides her with more creative leeway than a non-indigenous director may have enjoyed. For while issues such as death in custody are subtly addressed, so too are stereotypes such as binge drinking in indigenous communities, but in a far more playful fashion than we're used to. Ostensibly, though, such issues play second fiddle to what is essentially a coming-of-age road movie, as teenager Willie attempts to make his way home to Broome from Perth after fleeing his Catholic school. At first glance, a homegrown musical featuring an Australian idol (Jessica Mauboy), a Triple J darling (Missy Higgins) and an unknown (Rocky McKenzie) may not appeal, but all acquit themselves well. Geoffrey Rush has fun as the frightfully Teutonic Father Benedictus, lending the film both credibility and quality, while Ernie Dingo's reprisal of his stage role as Uncle Tadpole is the work of a man both very familiar with, and fond of, the source material. Cameos from Deborah Mailman and Magda Szubanski are fun, frivolous and, therefore, in keeping with the overall feel of the film.
moon r

i actually yelled at the screen in this: "what a load!!!!" i apologise for the over-reaction, but i found this to be almost as insulting as "the triumph of the will" (but certainly no less over-the-top propaganda) and perhaps insidiously akin to pat boone's… More
i actually yelled at the screen in this: "what a load!!!!" i apologise for the over-reaction, but i found this to be almost as insulting as "the triumph of the will" (but certainly no less over-the-top propaganda) and perhaps insidiously akin to pat boone's "innocent" version of "tutti frutti". unfortunately i fear that i am alone in recognition of the overwhelming yet underlining hate in evidence here.
Kyle S

My thoughts on this are very mixed. I enjoyed parts of it, but some just fell flat for me. One thing is for sure, Geoffrey Rush gave an incredibly hilarious performance!
Jason S

I thought this was really enjoyable. It was a good look at the Aboriginals in Australia in a light hearted way and set in an area we dont see a lot in Western Australia. Some nice songs and especially great singing from Miss Higgins and also Jessica Mauboy and the German kid was fun… More
I thought this was really enjoyable. It was a good look at the Aboriginals in Australia in a light hearted way and set in an area we dont see a lot in Western Australia. Some nice songs and especially great singing from Miss Higgins and also Jessica Mauboy and the German kid was fun and Geoffrey Rush is always good. Ernie Dingo was a standout and plays comedy well and even had a decent voice. Not an earth shattering movie but good wholesome family stuff :)