UNFINISHED SKY: DVD

SYNOPSIS:
When loner John Woldring (William McInnes) sees a distraught, bruised & bloodied woman scrambling on his outback Queensland property, he has no option but to tend for her - even though he doesn't understand a word she says. She seems terrified of some locals. Within the next few days he learns her name is Tahmeena (Monic Hendrickx) and on a map, she indicates she's from Afghanistan. In town, John gets suspicious of the publican (Bille Brown), who is asking about one of their 'cleaners' having made a run for it. John keeps Tahmeena hidden at his house, teaching her English and soon learns she fled Afghanistan in search of her daughter, who had replaced a dead girl in a refugee family. When he offers her clothes from a cupboard, Tahmeena discovers secrets from John's past. But the publican comes looking for her and local cop Carl (David Field) also catches up with her. And they've met before ...

Review by Andrew L. Urban:
Anchored by two outstanding performances, Unfinished Sky is an engaging and intriguing drama. It is engaging for its characters and intriguing for its unpredictable story. Director Peter Duncan structures the story in such a way as to keep our interest piqued; information about the characters and the story are revealed in slivers and the audience is given enough clues to work some elements out for themselves. All that tends to draw us into the film, and Monic Hendrickx makes an alluring and interesting Tahmeena, at times tragic, at times endearingly feminine.

William McInnes turns John into a complex character whose isolation is rudely interrupted; he is a rough diamond in some respects, but his extensive library and tastefully furnished outback home - which is no mere shack - attests to a life of greater sophistication than his tractor jumping present displays.

Supports hardly have time to register, even though their roles are crucial to the plot. Bille Brown is solid as the publican with a dark secret, as is David Field as the cop with same.

The screenplay touches on illegal migration, avoiding judgement; but the human drama of the story behind Tahmeena's circumstances offers a glimpse into a world most Australians can't understand, don't see and hardly ever care about. In that respect, it's both a socio-political film and a genuine contemporary drama.

DVD special features include deleted scenes, interviews with cast and crew, behind the scenes featurette, storyboards of the shootout scenes plus original theatrical trailer.

Published October 9, 2008