''15 Amore'' is a 1998 Australian film directed by Maurice Murphy and starring Lisa Hensley and

Steve Bastoni Steve Bastoni (born 4 March 1966) is an Italian-born Australian actor. He became a household name in Australia for his role as Constable Yannis 'Angel' Angelopoulos in ''Police Rescue'' and as Steve Parker in ''Neighbours''. His memorable per ...

Cast

* Lisa Hensley as Dorothy *

as Alfredo * Domenic Galati as Joseph * Tara Jakszewicz as Rachel * Gertraud Ingeborg as Madame Guttman *

Rhiana Griffith Rhiana Jade Griffith (born April 16, 1985) is an Australian former actress and artist. Life and career Griffith was born in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. She began modeling as a child, doing runway work and catalogue advert ...

as Mercia * Joel Pieterse as Denis * Nicholas Bryant as Brendan * Bill Hunter as present-day Brendan (narrator)

Plot

In WWII Australia, Dorothy and her three little children have a small farm in the

Mount Macedon Mount Macedon ( ; or ) is a dormant volcano that is part of the Macedon Ranges of the Great Dividing Range, located in the Central Highlands (Victoria), Central Highlands region of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The mountain has a ...

area of

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

. Nothing has been heard of their father, Dorothy's husband, who was a soldier before the war and one of the first to volunteer. Italian

POW POW is "prisoner of war", a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. POW or pow may also refer to: Music * P.O.W (Bullet for My Valentine song), "P.O.W" (Bull ...

s Alfredo and Joseph are billeted with Dorothy, ostensibly as farmhands but treated more like family members or arms-length friends. As the film opens they are acting as ballboys while Dorothy practices tennis strokes. A pair of soldiers regularly check that the prisoners haven't escaped – a farcical procedure, as all four are happy with the ''

status quo is a Latin phrase meaning the existing state of affairs, particularly with regard to social, economic, legal, environmental, political, religious, scientific or military issues. In the sociological sense, the ''status quo'' refers to the curren ...

''. Domestic arrangements are overturned when Dorothy is expected to host a pair of Jewish German refugees: Frau Guttman and her shy daughter Rachel. The daughter is pleased to be there and eager to fit in, but the Frau, who is proud of her pre-war wealth and status, cannot reconcile herself to the place or the culture. Denis, the curly-haired son, around whom much of the action is centred, attempts to befriend her but is rebuffed. There is a mutual attraction between Alfredo and Dorothy, and grows steadily, but loyalty to their distant spouses holds them apart; meanwhile a secret romance develops between Joseph and Rachel, who may be below the

age of consent The age of consent is the age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to Human sexual activity, sexual acts. Consequently, an adult who engages in sexual activity with a person younger than the age of consent is un ...

. At the next visit of the Army officials, Frau Guttman makes vague accusations against the Italians: she may have witnessed some illicit sexual activity but refuses to give names. Eventually Alfredo defuses the situation by (falsely) confessing, thereby leaving open the possibility of Joseph's eventual return. In the last scene, the war is over. The father returns as the Italians are taken away for repatriation. He is barely noticed, as Joseph and Alfredo are tearfully farewelled.

References

External links

*
''15 Amore''
at Urban Cinefile
15 Amore
at Oz Movies Australian World War II films 1990s English-language films Films directed by Maurice Murphy 1990s Australian films {{1990s-Australia-film-stub