Film No. 4 (2015) January 16th. 3.30 PM Fenwick 3 Cinemas Esperance.
The Quote: "I'm eleven and I get it"
It's a brave director and thus production company who aims a feature film at the very narrow 7 to 12 year old market. At this age kids are restricting some of the film's audience by telling their parents they want to go by themselves. If the film fails to attract their interest then word will spread quickly. The film has to tick many boxes before it can expect success. While I'm not a primary school student I suspect Paper Planes will have mild success.
Director Rob Connolly (The Bank, Balibo) was inspired to make films because of the Australian films (Storm Boy and Blue Finn)he loved when he first visited cinemas. It is his opinion that there is a current dearth of these types of films so he felt motivated to create his own, devising it with a heart and a very simple story line. I am of Mr Connolly's generation and I too loved the films he loved and I suspect it wasn't critics who fashioned our enjoyment.
Dylan (Ed Oxenbould) and his dad Jack (Sam Worthington) live in the small rural town of Waylup. Both are recovering emotionally from the sudden death of their beautiful mother and wife. A gulf is forming between them because Jack is moping and Dylan is trying to get on with things in the best way we knows how; make a paper plane that will win a state, national and then world championship. The 90 minute journey towards his final goal is filled with overcoming adversity and just the right amount of predictable tension.
Coaxing international stars in Worthington, Wenham and Oxenbould to this humble project will help to build the profile of Paper Planes. I just wonder whether the script was so simplistic that the focus audience is not "stretched" in any way. Worthington and Wenham didn't always look comfortable delivering their simple messages. But like the rise in interest amongst the young in martial arts after The Karate Kid exploded onto our screens in the eighties, perhaps there'll be squadrons of paper planes launched in 2015 inspired by this small film with wind beneath its wings. 8GUMS
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