SUNFLOWER Reviewed by GREG KING
Director: Gabriel Carrubba
Stars: Liam Mollica, Luke J Morgan, Daniel Halmarick, Sal Galofaro, Elias Anton.
As with Of An Age, last year’s opening film at MIFF, Sunflower is a locally produced gay coming of age drama and love story that has a deep personal resonance for its director and is informed by his own experiences. After a couple of short films and lots of work with music videos and tv work, filmmaker Gabriel Carrubba has made his feature film debut with this film that has drawn upon his own experiences of growing up in Berwick, a suburb in Melbourne’s southeast, and wrestling with his own sexuality. This sensitive film follows 17-year-old Leo (Liam Mollica), a popular teenager wrestling with his own sexuality amid the usual concerns of parties, peer pressure and first crushes.
The film explores his complicated relationship with his best friend Boof (Luke J Morgan), who he feels increasingly attracted towards, and a newfound and rewarding friendship with the quiet, nerdy Tom (Daniel Halmarick, in his film debut) that gives him strength to accept his sexuality. Carrubba and cinematographer Martine Wolff (who hails from a background in short films) shot the film on locations around Berwick, which lends authenticity to the material. Their use of closeups also gives the audience a strong connection to the characters and their thoughts and internal tensions and also provides an intimacy in some scenes. The film has an honesty as it depicts the challenges of coming out in a conservative working-class environment.
For most of the young, largely unknown cast this is their first feature film, and there is an understandable tentativeness to some of their performances. Mollica (from the tv series Nowhere Boys, etc) gives a natural and sensitive performance here that captures Leo’s vulnerability and confusion. Veteran Sal Galofaro (from tv series Killing Time, etc) has a gruff presence as Frank, Leo’s blue-collar father, who shows an unexpected empathy towards Leo. And Elias Anton, who starred in Of An Age, has a brief cameo here in a markedly different role as a homophobic youth involved in a violent gay bashing incident.
The titular sunflowers provide a potent metaphor for Leo’s coming out story and his exploration of his blossoming sexuality. Admittedly, Sunflower taps into some familiar tropes of the gay coming of age story but Carrubba provides a fresh, personal take on the familiar journey.
★★★
