Balibo (feature film)
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | Balibo |
| Country of production | Australia |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 2009 |
| length | 111 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Robert Connolly |
| script | David Williamson |
| production |
Anthony LaPaglia Dominic Purcell |
| music |
Ego Lemos , Lisa Gerrard |
| camera | Tristan Milani |
| cut | Nick Meyers |
| occupation | |
| |
Balibo is a 2009 Australian feature film . It tells of the beginning of Indonesia's invasion of neighboring East Timor at the end of 1975. The story begins with the fate of the Balibo Five and Roger Easts , western journalists who were murdered by Indonesian soldiers during the invasion. The film is loosely based on the book Cover-Up by the Australian journalist Jill Jolliffe , who met the victims in East Timor.
The film was also dubbed into the East Timorese language Tetum .
action
The main character is the former foreign correspondent Roger East, who now works in an advertising agency in Darwin, Australia . The young revolutionary José Ramos-Horta invites East to come to East Timor. Ramos-Horta is the foreign minister of the young state proclaimed by FRETILIN , which has unilaterally declared itself independent from the colonial power Portugal . East initially declines, but changes his mind when Ramos-Horta shows him photos of five reporters who work for Australian television networks. You have been missing in the East Timorese border town of Balibo for some time . Flashbacks show the fate of the Balibo Five , up to their death, when they film attacking Indonesian soldiers before the official invasion and are then executed by them. East travels with Ramos-Horta to the now occupied border area to research the fate of the reporters. He later witnessed the open march of the Indonesians and the occupation of the state capital Dili on December 7, 1975. East, who actually wanted to retreat to the mountains with the FRETILIN fighters, was taken prisoner by Indonesians and executed. At the same time, the story of the fictional East Timorese woman Juliana is told, about her memories of East and the occupation by Indonesia. The film ends with the liberation of East Timor from the Indonesian occupation in 1999 and the memory of their numerous victims.
production
Filming began on June 30, 2008 in Dili. Balibo was the first feature film to be shot in the country that has been independent since 2002. It was produced by the Australian Arena film with Robert Connolly as director and David Williamson as screenwriter. Anthony LaPaglia , who took on the role of Roger East, was also one of the producers. On July 31, streets in the capital were cordoned off with the help of UN police in order to re-enact the invasion . 60 to 70 East Timorese extras played, including 30 soldiers from the East Timorese Defense Forces representing Indonesian soldiers.
The world premiere took place at the Melbourne International Film Festival on July 24, 2009 in Melbourne's Hamer Hall. José Ramos-Horta, who had meanwhile become President of East Timor , was also present.
criticism
Richard Kuipers of Variety calls the film a tight, character-driven thriller with a political commentary on the side that moves viewers with little or no knowledge of the background to empathize with the Balibo Five. LaPaglia plays the tired scribe very well, who is slowly finding his old fire again. Isaac impressively represents the young Ramos-Horta, with political acumen and the ability to read in people. "
Awards and nominations
On November 2, 2009, Balibo received at the Screen Music Awards of the Australian APRA Awards for the "Best Original Song Composed for Screen" by Ego Lemos and the "Best Feature Film Score" by Lisa Gerrard . The soundtrack was nominated as "Best Soundtrack Album".
Balibo was named “Best Australian Film 2009” by the Australian Film Critics Association .
Reactions
In 2007, Australian investigators came to the conclusion that the Balibo Five had been executed by Indonesian soldiers after they tried to surrender. Indonesia continues to insist that the reporters were killed in the crossfire.
In Indonesia, the film was to be shown for the first time in 2009 at the Jakarta International Film Festival . At the world premiere, East Timor’s President Ramos-Horta paid tribute to Indonesia's move to democracy, but the film was banned by the Indonesian film censorship before a private screening by the Jakarta Foreign Correspondents Club . Indonesia's Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa justified the ban by saying that they wanted to prevent a negative “global perception of Indonesia”. The Indonesian military welcomed the ban. A spokesman said the film could damage relations with East Timor and Australia.
See also
literature
- Jill Jolliffe : Balibo , Melbourne 2009, ISBN 978-1-921372-77-3
Web links
- Homepage feature film (English)
- Balibo in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ SBS : Balibo filmmakers honored in East Timor , August 31, 2009 , accessed December 23, 2014.
- ^ A b c Richard Kuipers: Balibo Movie Review in Variety, July 23, 2009 , accessed December 23, 2014.
- ↑ ABC : Movie stars looking to bed with Darwin locals , April 29, 2008 , accessed December 23, 2014.
- ^ Agence France Presse: E Timor capital shuts down for film invasion remake , 31. July 2008 ( Memento of July 4, 2013 in the Internet Archive ), accessed on December 23, 2014.
- ↑ a b c BBC News: Indonesia 'tortured' Balibo Five , July 24, 2009
- ↑ APRA AMACOS: Best Original Song Composed for Screen 2009 , accessed December 23, 2014.
- ↑ APRA AMACOS: Best Feature Film Score 2009 , accessed on December 23, 2014.
- ↑ APRA AMACOS: Best Soundtrack Album 2009 , accessed on December 23, 2014.
- ↑ Screen Hub: AFCA announces Annual Film Awards & introduces prices for film writing. , February 18, 2010 , accessed December 23, 2014.
- ↑ The Jakarta Globe: Australian Film 'Balibo' Banned by Indonesian Censors , December 1, 2009 ( Memento of the original from December 5, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed December 23, 2014.
- ↑ Markus Junianto Sihaloho and Putri Prameshwari: 'Balibo' Ban Wins Rave Reviews From Indonesian Military in The Jakarta Globe, December 2, 2009 ( Memento of the original from December 26, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed December 23, 2014.
