Quick Summary: What was a young Chinese woman doing wandering an isolated patch of the Australian desert? Find out in this beautifully-shot, thoughtful mystery-thriller.

Title: Goldstone

Release: 2016

Director: Ivan Sen

Starring:

Aaron Pedersen (Detective Jay Swan)

Alex Russel (Josh)

What was a young Chinese woman doing wandering an isolated patch of the Australian desert? That is the mystery Detective Jay Swan (Pederson), honourable but bitter and broken in a film noir kind of way, is hoping to unravel when he arrives in the tiny mining town of Goldstone. A young police officer, Josh, (Russel) is the law in those parts - and while he isn't entirely corrupt, he isn't above accepting a free pie from the mayor to look the other way, now and then. Throw into the mix the money-hungry Furnace Creek Metals Group - operators of the open-pit mine that is the Town's raison d'etre, and the fractious band council of the local aboriginal group, and there are machinations within machinations, complicating what might otherwise be a very simple plot.

The technical aspects of this film are more than satisfying. The use of sound is excellent. The film takes advantage of all the speakers available in a modern theatre. Sounds often come from behind or beside the viewer, enhancing the sense of place. I also enjoyed the acting. Pederson and Russel put in nuanced, complex performances, and the supporting cast are uniformly effective. The movie is beautifully shot; no desert has ever looked so perfect on film. This is especially true of the numerous overhead shots, which director Sen says were deliberately included to reflect the Australian aboriginal world view. Sometimes, however, the beautiful cinematography works against the themes of the film; there are some gorgeous shots of controlled explosions in the otherwise-presented-as-entirely-evil open-pit mine that wouldn't be out of place in a Kinross ad.

While the film is bursting with action scenes, it is also thoughtful and surprisingly quiet. I enjoyed it thoroughly and cannot recommend it enough.