Australia (2008)

Australia is the kind of big, unapologetic movie they don’t really make anymore: a sunburnt epic that throws romance, adventure, and history into the same saddlebag and rides straight into Baz Luhrmann’s operatic imagination. Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman have the star power and chemistry to make the sweeping emotions feel earned, while the cattle-drive sequences and vast outback vistas deliver the sort of old-fashioned spectacle that practically demands a large screen. The tone is lush and melodramatic in the best way—part classic Hollywood romance, part frontier yarn, with real wartime danger tightening the story’s grip as it goes. It’s not for viewers allergic to grand gestures or heightened storytelling, but if you’re willing to surrender to its panache, it’s an entertaining, heartfelt ride with images you’ll remember.

Australia is clearly trying to be an old-school, sweeping epic: romance, rugged adventure, and a big-hearted tribute to the land and its people, all dialed up in Baz Luhrmann’s maximalist style. The problem is it often feels like two or three movies stitched together, lurching between melodrama, crowd-pleasing cattle-drive spectacle, and wartime tragedy, which makes the already long runtime feel even longer. Character work can be thin and familiar, so if you’re hoping for subtle writing or fresh storytelling, you may find it pretty derivative despite the gorgeous production. Still, Kidman and Jackman have star power, the landscapes are stunning, and there are moments of genuine emotion—just don’t go in expecting a tight, nuanced drama.