Bad Boy Bubby

AroView: Nicholas Hope is terrific as a 35-year-old man who ventures out for the first time into suburban Australia after a lifetime of abusive incarceration.

Confined to a two-room slum his whole life with a religious nutter of a mum, he is finally driven to head outside. Armed with only a few phrases he’s learnt from mum, he discovers a tough and inhospitable world, encountering a bizarre variety of characters.

A weird but frequently hysterical parable, with a discordant mood emphasized by the use of no less than 30 cinematographers, this became an unlikely but deserving hit for director Rolf De Heer (THE TRACKER). Viewers who bravely persist beyond the disturbing first act will find this a greatly rewarding experience.