RaimondGaita Tagged Articles at Cinematical

The big screen is about to get a taste of (more) war and dysfunction:

• In the wake of guns, redaction, and other war films, we're about to get a taste of some military scrubs. The Hollywood Reporter has announced that Oscar winner Terry Sanders' latest documentary, Fighting for Life, has been picked up by Truly Indie for a US theatrical release. The doc focuses on three interweaving stories -- the doctors/nurses/medics who work in Iraq, wounded fighters, and USU med students aiming to become military doctors. Sanders has been at this for eons -- he won his first Oscar in 1955 for the short A Time Out of War. If experience is any indication, this should be a notable film to check out. Truly Indie will get the documentary in theaters this March.
• During TIFF, I got to see and review Richard Roxburgh's feature directorial debut, Romulus, My Father -- a slow, albeit decent family drama. The film is based on the memoir by writer Raimond Gaita, and covers his young life as his dedicated father (Eric Bana) struggles to be a good father to him while his mother (Franka Potente) does all she can to flee from the responsibility of motherly duty. Now Variety reports that Magnolia Pictures has nabbed distribution rights to the Australian drama. Prexy Eamonn Bowles says: "Eric Bana is a great actor, and this was a great performance from him; I think people will respond to it very strongly." While the film will hit the big screen at some point, it seems, Magnolia is planning to first release it to lucky HDNet Ultra VOD subscribers first.

Simple and understated, Romulus, My Father begins with Romulus Gaita (Eric Bana) and his son, Raimond (Kodi Smit-McPhee). A light bulb sways in the black of night, and the father attempts to teach his son about life. He is holding a handful of still and lifeless wasps. As the warmth of the light passes over them, they stir, and he brings the insects back to life in front of the amazed eyes of Raimond. The lesson is simple: with warmth, life will thrive. It is an ideal that the elder Gaita models his life upon, and while it continues to fail him in his own life, he is fueled by Raimond taking the lesson to heart.

Coming from Raimond Gaita's noted memoir, Romulus, My Father follows the writer's young life in 1960's Australia. His family has emigrated from Eastern Europe, and now find their life divided. Father and son live alone in the country, receiving only sporadic visits from unreliable wife and mother Christina (Franka Potente). Romulus allows this because he loves Christina, and believes that she needs him. Raimond is an ideal kid, one who remains optimistic and loving in the shadow of his mother's absence. It is, however, an optimism that is continually challenged as his father is beaten by the hardships that life hurls at him time and time again.