Campy exacts revenge - ****

Shot  entirely in Australia in 2014, the movie comes highly acclaimed by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television with several nominations including best film, best director, best actress and best supporting actress.  With one of the great contemporary actresses playing as mother to Kate Winslet, Judy Davis provides much of the acting spine in this film with Kate getting along in repartee.

The story is set in a fictitious town in Australia called Dungatar.  When Tilly was ten years old, she was banished from the town at the wake of a suspected murder of a boy.  The movie starts in 1951 when Tilly comes back to learn the truth behind the incident and to take care of her ailing mom.  She uses her talent in designing and making dresses to learn the truth and to exact revenge on her town that did her wrong.

To me there are two parts to this film, the love story part and the revenge part.  It was pretty amusing the first half, with a mix of mystery and drama and some campy-ness to provide some giggles.  The story is really a mix of drama and comedy underneath a very serious theme of  deception and revenge.  The story is really based on a book of the same tittle, the film tries its best to be loyal to the story but the movie's limitation did not translate well in transcending from first half to second half.

The strength of this film lies in its honesty at presenting the ugly side of human nature.  It did not sway in the direction of common expectations and tried to honestly present the story as it really is based on the book.  The acting tandem of Kate Winslet and Judy Davis as mother and daughter is the anchor by which all the other intentions of the movie is tied to.