I’ll see just about any Australian film that makes it over here (even if it hits UK screens almost a year later like the one I’m reviewing here). I love them. But Little Fish is not just any movie. It is one of the most raw and powerful films I’ve seen for a long, long time and had me ‘in’ from the first scene.

Set in Cabramatta, it’s about Tracey (Cate Blanchett) who is trying to escape her heroin-addicted past, but is haunted by the return of an old boyfriend, her brother’s involvement in drug dealing and the devastating drug habit of Lionel (Hugo Weaving), who seems to be the closest she has to a father figure.

Don’t expect feel-good vibes or a ‘Hollywood’ ending. What you’ll get is a gripping movie with truly superb performances from pretty much the whole cast. It’s a long way from Play School for Noni Hazlehurst who gives an exceptionally convincing and heart-wrenching performance as Tracey’s tormented mother Janelle. And Hugo Weaving is a genius.

The film examines, in a really honest and moving way, how this family faces the demons of the past and of the present, entangled in the world of drugs.

A few times throughout the movie a local school choir sings a haunting rendition of Cold Chisel’s ‘Flame Trees’ and it’ll make your hairs stand on end.

michelle’s rating: 10/10

ben’s rating: 100000000/10 – it was that good!