Adapted from Jane Harper’s 2016 international bestseller, our latest randomly selected watch, The Dry, is a solid Australian slow burner of a crime drama starring Eric Bana.
With Eric Bana in the lead, The Dry tells the story of Federal Agent Aaron Falk (Bana) as he reluctantly returns to his drought-stricken hometown in rural Australia to attend the funeral of his childhood friend, Luke, who was the culprit in a presumed murder-suicide. Although the whole town believes him guilty, Luke’s parents are adamant that he would never hurt his family and persuade Aaron to stay a while to investigate the case.
It soon becomes clear that Aaron is not welcome in his hometown of Kiewarra, with many believing him to be responsible for the mysterious death of a teenage girl, Aaron’s highschool girlfriend, some twenty years before. As Aaron’s investigation continues he begins to believe that the two crimes, separated by decades, may actually be connected and he struggles against the town’s prejudices to clear Luke’s name, as well as his own. But is he desperate to connect the cases in a bid to assuage his own guilt?
The strength of the film sits in its simplicity, there’s no endless stream of unnecessary twists, turns or whodunnit clichés but rather it relies on solid straightforward storytelling. The stark, sparse arid landscape is broodingly depicted in the film’s cinematography and adds a somewhat desolute, desperate tone that perfectly complements the bleakness of the story. There is an intense feeling that the whole place could go up in flames both metaphorically and literally, bringing forth images of the intense wildfires that ravaged the country in early 2020.
The pacing is slow and steady, building up to a satisfactory final act. The use of flashbacks help us visualise the history of the town and understand the reasoning behind the animosity that Bana’s Aaron Falk faces from people that he used to call friends and neighbours. As the story progresses, the flashbacks somehow manages to shed doubt on both Luke and Aaron’s innocence whilst also leading us to the ultimate truth. It is a interesting aspect of the film and keeps the audience on it’s toes until the very end.
In his role, Bana delivers an understated yet nuanced performance that may be guarded but comes alive when pops of anger and frustration burst through the persona. Genevieve O’Reilly’s turn as Aaron’s childhood friend, Gretchen, acts as a bridge between the past and the present – she was the fourth member of the group that consisted of Aaron, Luke and the murdered girl Ellie. The rest of the supporting performances were solidly delivered with many (seemingly) small roles that each play a key part in the unfolding of the story, like puzzle pieces that create the whole picture.
Whilst it is easy to see how and why The Dry may have fallen under the radar a little, especially with the world in a state of chaos over the last 18-24 months but overall, it is a solid offering that is well worth a watch.
The Dry is available* to stream on Now TV.
*at the time of publishing
