In The Rooster, a small-town cop seeks answers from a volatile hermit after his oldest friend is found buried in a shallow grave. Source: Australian Catholics.
The setting is a small, isolated bush town in the Macedon Ranges outside Melbourne. It has only one middle-aged policeman Dan (Raei), whose sad past is gradually revealed. Dan keeps chickens and a rooster. He also has a recurring dream – a premonition perhaps – about a mysterious naked woman carrying a rooster, and a body hanging from a tree.
When a friend of Dan’s is killed, a wandering dog leads Dan to the grave. But this also leads him further into the bush, where he comes across a remote house and encounters Tim, also known as Mit, which is from his nickname – The Hermit (Weaving).
While Raei gives a convincing performance as Dan, and our sympathies are with him, Weaving takes over the screen as The Hermit, too, has a sad history. There are suggestions of something sinister but is this just speculation on Dan’s part? On the audience’s part?
The Rooster shows Weaving at his screen best, reminding us that he has impressed in top-line films and television series for decades. He can make each character he portrays real and convincing.
The film is sometimes brooding, sometimes funny and portrays how much a friendship can change a person and help them come to terms with their life story.
Review by Fr Peter Malone MSC, Jesuit Media
The Rooster: Starring Phoenix Raei, Hugo Weaving, John Waters, Rhys Mitchell. Directed by Mark Leonard Winter. 101 minutes. Rated MA (Strong themes, coarse language and suicide references)
FULL REVIEW
The Rooster (Jesuit Media via Australian Catholics)
