The Black Balloon: 93 minutes. Rated: M. Director: Elissa Down. Starring: Rhys Wakefield, Luke Ford, Toni Collette, Erik Thomson, Gemma Ward.
Anyone who saw last year's Australian 'dramedy' Clubland may be struck by a sense of déjà vu when they come across The Black Balloon. Like its predecessor, The Black Balloon features a suburban teen hero looking for love and trying to live his own life, and variously helped and hindered by an overbearing mother and a brother with a disability.
But where Clubland suffered from a wavering tenor that saw it veer between slapstick and melodrama, The Black Balloon strikes a perfect emotional equilibrium. It is funnier, more heartbreaking, and ultimately more fulfilling than Clubland.
At its heart is the relationship between teenage brothers Thomas (Wakefield) and Charlie (Ford). Charlie is autistic, and with their obstinate, affectionate and heavily pregnant mother (Collette in full-blown mother-mode) largely bedridden, and military-man father (Mollison) hard at work, the demands of caring for him fall increasingly upon Thomas.
It's a frustrating way to spend one's teen-dom — after all, Thomas has his own life to live, and adolescent goals to pursue. Top of the list is local girl Jackie (Ward), who has taken a shine to the cherubic Thomas. The feeling is mutual, but Thomas is concerned that the particular challenges presented by Charlie might scare her off.
The Black Balloon demonstrates tremendous attention to detail. Anyone who was a teenager during the 1990s will feel pangs of recognition at the touches of period authenticity. It's a world where Ratcat is on the radio, and there are wooden clothes pegs on the Hills Hoist. Jackie's bicycle wheels clatter with spoke beads, and she wears a pink Stackhat. At one point, the Mollison family upgrades from a Commodore 64 to a Super Nintendo.
Such window dressing helps evoke Thomas and Charlie's world. The early '90s suburban locale is a tangible and familiar environment, where intolerance and ignorance brood beneath the surface. Thomas' obnoxious class mates, who hurl insults at the local 'special' bus, will make your stomach churn. Even the local adults regard Charlie as something distasteful or pitiable. Ward provides a counterpoint. Jackie is generous and gracious towards Charlie.
This is more than just an assured debut from writer/director Down. It is one of the great and memorable Australian films of recent times. The insight into the life of a family with an autistic child rings true — little surprise,