With a biblical title like this one might come to expect a film of action and excitement. On the contrary it goes at a rather slow pace with very little dialogue and it's set in the middle of Australia where the land is empty and seems to spread out in all directions forever. Every day is the same ending with a sunset all red and gold. Then the black curtain of night descends and the stars come out.
The characters in this story are Samson an aboriginal teenager and Delilah an aboriginal girl of similar age living with her aged Granny. The two young characters are well cast. They are inexperienced actors but under good direction they deliver well. The best actor is Granny an old aboriginal woman with the most infectious chuckle. She teaches Delilah the ancient art of dot painting in the hope of selling them to tourists in Alice Springs.The film makers create a Samson who is a part of the land in which he somehow survives. Wirh no job, few friends, he leads an empty life with little hope for the future. His escape is petrol sniffing and listening to western music and admiring Delilah at a distance..
When Granny dies, Samson and Delilah go walkabout to Alice Springs camping under a railway bridge. In a typical aboriginal custom they share what little tinned food they have with a stranger. He rebukes them for their petrol sniffing saying it will damage their f***ing brains. This scene does not ring true.
The couple wander about in a dazed manner trying to sell paintings. Delilah is knocked down by a car and Samson staggers on back to the campsite unaware of the accident.
I thought that Delilah was killed. This was not made clear. The next scene shows her dot painting and care free and looking up into Samson's eyes. A very sudden change in mood I thought from their earlier behaviour. I really felt that eventually they would both die like Romeo and Juliet. But no,the film makers decided to finish with a ray of hope, however slim. Yhe film has a certain magic about it which lingers after the credits roll.
The characters in this story are Samson an aboriginal teenager and Delilah an aboriginal girl of similar age living with her aged Granny. The two young characters are well cast. They are inexperienced actors but under good direction they deliver well. The best actor is Granny an old aboriginal woman with the most infectious chuckle. She teaches Delilah the ancient art of dot painting in the hope of selling them to tourists in Alice Springs.The film makers create a Samson who is a part of the land in which he somehow survives. Wirh no job, few friends, he leads an empty life with little hope for the future. His escape is petrol sniffing and listening to western music and admiring Delilah at a distance..
When Granny dies, Samson and Delilah go walkabout to Alice Springs camping under a railway bridge. In a typical aboriginal custom they share what little tinned food they have with a stranger. He rebukes them for their petrol sniffing saying it will damage their f***ing brains. This scene does not ring true.
The couple wander about in a dazed manner trying to sell paintings. Delilah is knocked down by a car and Samson staggers on back to the campsite unaware of the accident.
I thought that Delilah was killed. This was not made clear. The next scene shows her dot painting and care free and looking up into Samson's eyes. A very sudden change in mood I thought from their earlier behaviour. I really felt that eventually they would both die like Romeo and Juliet. But no,the film makers decided to finish with a ray of hope, however slim. Yhe film has a certain magic about it which lingers after the credits roll.