I have to say that I had heard quite a bit about Nitram so when it came up as a Cineworld Unlimited Screening I grabbed my ticket and headed over to Cineworld in Llandudno to check out the movie that is based on the events leading up to the 1996 Port Arthur massacre on Tasmania in an attempt to understand why and how the atrocity occurred.
Caleb Landry Jones plays the title role of Nitram who is a troubled young man that lives with his parents, the film slowly builds up to the 1996 massacre, but on the way, we delve into his life and the problems that he faces with his mental health and see how things affect his reactions to situations in life.
There is a moment where Nitram is showing his love of fireworks to a bunch of schoolkids before being shouted at by a teacher, then when his father arrives we see the problems that the parents are coping with as Nitram refuses to let go of the car horn as his father tries to stop him from doing it.
The film is a not so much a slow starting film, but one that tries to take us along the route that the lead character takes before the terrible day in 1996, Caleb Landry Jones (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) is great as Nitram and you certainly feel the anxiety of the character coming out of the character through the film, Judy Davis (Naked Lunch) and Anthony LaPaglia (Without a Trace) are superb as the long-suffering parents that are doing their best to cope with the outbursts etc.
Essie Davis (The Babadook) who plays Helen is great to watch as she takes Nitram under her wing and gives him the escape and freedom that he doesn’t have with his parents, but after a tragic accident things start to change dramatically.
This is a film that really isn’t going to be for everyone, but it is a fascinating watch and it’s also a film that is well directed by Justin Kurzel (Assassin’s Creed, Macbeth) and brings us some great scenes shot in the 1.55:1 which at first takes little getting used to after many films these days being in a full widescreen presentation, but the screen format works for the contact for the time the film is set in.
Writer Shaun Grant has certainly taken us on a journey with Martin (Nitram) and it’s a somewhat uneasy journey, but the film is one that may not have all the action sequences that a lot of films have these days and the violence is done in a way that doesn’t show the bloodshed and violence, look out for a fantastic scene as Nitram performers a murder, the moment is all done from a camera in the car that follows him from the driver’s seat to the boot of the car and then to the house, then back to the car, the scene looks great and is even more shocking that you don’t see the gruesome act, but see the lack of remorse on Nitram’s face.
Nitram is a powerful drama that uses the story to build up the shocking moment in Australian history without the need to show the horror of the event in 1996, the cast portrays the characters brilliantly and Caleb Landry Jones is certainly a scene story in the title role, with the film based on a true story you know that it is subject that is one that is very moving and with the film ending with text on the screen about the gun laws in Australia and the silence of credits rolling up the screen, Nitram is a film that will have you leaving the cinema as quietly as the end credits.
Let’s hope that the film gets a wider release in UK cinemas when it is released on the 1st of July.
A Slow Burner that Lights the Fire
Movie title: Nitram
Movie description: Events leading up to the 1996 Port Arthur massacre on Tasmania in an attempt to understand why and how the atrocity occurred.
Date published: June 28, 2022
Country: UK
Duration: 1h 52m
Director(s): Justin Kurzel
Actor(s): Caleb Landry Jones, Judy Davis, Anthony LaPaglia
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Summary
Nitram is a powerful piece of cinema that has you glued from start to finish.
Karen Woodham is the founder and owner of the Blazing Minds. She is also a Cinema reviewer and works with RealD 3D reviewing the latest 3D releases and IMAX, she has also had several articles published in various publications including the first edition of SFW Magazine. In 2015 she became an Award Winning Blogger and also has her website listed as one of the UK’s Top 10 Film Blogs.
