A Worthwhile Film in So Many Ways

A very major factor influencing Australian society is the post-1970s arrival of people from other lands. Thus it is good that the film ‘The Combination’ has been made. Even today it will prove to be a useful resource for social studies and media students in senior high school; and in decades to come it will be important that this process has been recorded by this film, as a snapshot of the strains and pressures engendered by Australia’s push towards multiculturalism.
The film is, I judge, well scripted and well-acted. I know that there have been some postings saying it is formulaic or ill-considered, but the writer, producer, director and cast have given it a ‘go’, and good on them! I know the critics rail that if they were creating the movie they would do this, or do that, but the point is the film’s producers etc. have actually done it, and made a good fist of it. This is not to say that any created stuff will do, irrespective of quality, but The Combination does set itself high standards and has achieved them. No script can tick every box, and hence the film has had to present a fairly strong but clear story so that it will be acceptable to a wide range of audience members. I did not consider that it was over-loaded with either triteness or schmaltz or stereotyped development.
Is the film violent? I do not think so. Certainly it is located within a milieu where violence is present but the film itself usually just alludes to this fact, and does not glorify it, and gives an intimation of violence without dwelling upon the actual detailed occurrence of such.
Bye the way, postings to a Message Board should seek to be true to the linguistic sense of the word ‘message’, i.e. “a communication containing some information, news, advice”. Postings that limit themselves to bald uninformed assertions, or ugly diatribes fall outside this remit.
The film serves a useful role in shining a light upon the ‘hot potato’ topic of multiculturalism and its resulting tensions, and it has done so in a strong and solid sense. It is a good film.