''Crossbow'' is a 2007 Australian

coming-of-age Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can b ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

written and directed by

David Michôd David Michôd ( ;) is an Australian film director, screenwriter, producer, and actor. He is best known for directing the critically acclaimed crime drama '' Animal Kingdom'' (2010) and dystopian drama '' The Rover'' (2014). He also co-wrote '' ...

. The film features Cy Standen,

Joel Edgerton Joel Edgerton (born 23 June 1974) is an Australian actor and filmmaker. He is known for his portrayal of Will McGill on the first two seasons of the Australian drama series'' The Secret Life of Us'' (2001–02), and for playing Owen Lars in t ...

Lisa Chappell Lisa Irene Chappell (born 18 October 1968) is a New Zealand actress and musician. She is known for her roles as Chelsea Redfern in '' Gloss'' (1987–1990), and as Claire McLeod in '' McLeod's Daughters'' (2001–2003), a performance which earn ...

and Mirrah Foulkes and had its world premiere in competition at the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

on 9 March 2007. After that, the film competed at a number of film festivals and earned good reviews.

Plot

The film focuses on a kid and his relationship with his mum and dad, his problems and struggles, and the neighbour who watches the whole thing unravel.

Cast

*Cy Standen as The kid *

as The dad *

as The mum * Mirrah Foulkes as The Cop *

as Narrator

Filming

Filming took place at Macquarie Fields,

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Reception

Critical response

The film received mainly positive reviews. Jason Sondhi of ''short of the week'' gave film the positive review and praised Michôd's direction and said "I find the elegaic streak that Crossbow mines to be rare and wonderful in film, and kudos go to Michôd, because it is difficult to pull off. Indeed the film is strikingly reminiscent to one of the best films of this vein,

Sofia Coppola Sofia Carmina Coppola ( , ; born May 14, 1971) is an American filmmaker and former actress. She has List of awards and nominations received by Sofia Coppola, won an Academy Awards, Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, a Golden Lion, and a Can ...

’s work,

The Virgin Suicides ''The Virgin Suicides'' is a coming-of-age thriller novel and the debut novel by American writer Jeffrey Eugenides, published in 1993. The story, which is set in Grosse Pointe, Michigan during the 1970s, centers on the lives of five doomed sis ...

, a movie structured very similarly, with its title that undermines suspense, and its observant narration that wrestles with the exquisite sadness of seemingly senseless tragedy, and how it relates to sexuality and nostalgia." Another review for the film also praised Michôd by saying "Michôd seems very close to hitting all the right notes in Crossbow and he seems extremely comfortable behind a camera."

Accolades

References

External links

* * https://web.archive.org/web/20130424160701/http://www.aquariusfilms.com.au/index.php/about * https://web.archive.org/web/20130410025818/http://www.aquariusfilms.com.au/index.php/download_file/-/view/16 {{DEFAULTSORT:Crossbow 2007 short films 2007 films Australian coming-of-age films Australian drama short films Films directed by David Michôd Films set in Australia Films shot in Sydney Australian independent films 2000s English-language films English-language short films