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he returns to the caravan park in order to find and return the body to the grieving mother. He moves into the old cabin he used to live in with his mother and befriends Damien, the boy next door. James tells Damien that Chris had been his brother. He is eventually joined at the park by his mother Paige and her new boyfriend, Wayne. Paige tells Wayne that James is her nephew and that her son died.
224:
James then visits Ray and asks him about the dog they killed. Ray admits that he and
Anthony were playing in the tunnels under the bridge with the dog until Anthony tricked the dog into jumping into a hole from which it couldn't escape. This gives James the idea that Anthony hid Chris's body in the tunnels under the bridge.
243:
James returns home to Paige and tearfully reveals what happened the day of the drowning. Anthony, with vague recollections of
Bettina, had asked James to 'steal him a sister'. They had selected Chris, lured him away from his family, and played with him on the riverbank until Anthony started abusing
219:
Despite the fact that his family took out a restraining order against James, James is approached by his former friend
Anthony. Anthony was with him when he killed Chris and gave evidence that convicted James, leading to animosity between them. Anthony has turned into a lazy, drug-addicted hustler.
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James is a young man who has epilepsy and has recently been granted parole from the juvenile detention centre in which he has spent the last eight years. When he was ten, he drowned a little boy, Chris McCarthy, in a river at a caravan park, although the body was never found. After being released,
239:
In the meantime, Damien goes to
Anthony's house. Anthony is away so he talks to his father Gianni. His attempts at conversation, relating a story Anthony told him about a drowned baby, raise Gianni's suspicions. Gianni knocks Damien unconscious and Joe drives him away in the car. When Anthony
231:
James organises a fishing trip with Damien's family and Wayne near the bridge. He sneaks off and explores the tunnels. Though he finds the hole Ray mentioned, it is filled with water and he is unable to search it further. When he returns to the others, Damien reveals that Chris didn't have any
223:
James and Damien visit Mary, a local woman who keeps several dogs, to ask her about the possibility of the wild dogs taking the body. She dismisses the idea and mentions that
Anthony and another boy, Ray, killed one of her dogs a few years back. Wracked with guilt, Ray came to her to confess.
251:
The next morning, James returns to the tunnels under the bridge with Damien and Mary, along with ropes and torches. James climbs down into the water filled hole and eventually finds Chris's body, along with an even more decomposed body of a little girl, presumably
Bettina.
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Finally James visits Amos, who owns the local shop and has been blackmailed by
Anthony for many years. Amos reveals that Anthony and his brother Joe once had a younger sister, Bettina, who suddenly disappeared one day and the family never spoke of her again.
232:
brothers and guesses that James was his killer. He tells him to stay away from his family. The stress causes James to have a seizure in the water and he nearly drowns. When they return to the park, Wayne reveals to Paige that he knows James is her son.
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James discusses his search with Paige. She reveals that after the drowning, James had an epileptic seizure and
Anthony got him help, not leaving his side until many hours later. This leads James to realise that Anthony could not have hidden the body.
31:
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Joe and
Anthony then arrive and attempt to blackmail James into abandoning his search by beating Damien. This makes James even more determined to bring the family to justice. James and Damien escape to Mary's house, where they reconcile.
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Chris and pressured James to drown the boy before they got in trouble for their 'theft'. Paige then remembers that although
Anthony was there all evening, he did speak to Joe, giving Joe an opportunity to move the body.
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Reef Ireland as James - A young man recently paroled from detention for drowning a young boy as a child. He returns to the scene of the crime to locate the missing body.
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Charles Grounds as Damien - The bad-tempered boy who lives in the cabin next to James. He struggles to decide whether to have a relationship with James or with Anthony.
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He tries to dissuade James from looking for the body, reasoning that the local wild dogs probably took it. James refuses and in retaliation, Anthony seduces Damien.
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Sebastian Robinson as Amos - The owner of the local shop, Cowboy Coffee. He formerly had a relationship with Anthony and has been blackmailed ever since.
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on 7 August 2015 with much publicity. It sold out all three scheduled screenings, and the festival added a fourth screening to satisfy ticket demand.
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and Reef Ireland. It is described as a mystery drama in which a teenage killer returns to uncover dark truths in his quest to find a missing body.
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returns home later, Gianni beats him and questions him about what he has been saying about his sister, someone Anthony clearly doesn't remember.
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as Dana McCarthy - The mother of the boy James drowned. She meets with James before he is paroled, pleading for the location of her son's body.
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said it was "a tangled, tense and mercurial work a visually stunning piece, with superb performances and an utterly gripping story".
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as Paige Levy - James' mother. She struggles with her grief by telling people that her son died and James is her nephew.
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641:"MEDIA RELEASES 2014: SCREEN AUSTRALIA INVESTS IN 12 DIVERSE PROJECTS ACROSS FILM, TELEVISION AND MULTIPLATFORM"
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Shannon Glowacki as Ray Lewis - A mentally disturbed boy who is also a victim of Anthony's manipulations.
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described it as "brutal, gritty and unflinching populated with real characters". Laura Henderson from
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1089:"Editor Anthony Cox & Director Grant Scicluna Go Downriver To Talk About Their Upcoming Film"
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as Mary - A reclusive woman who cares for several dogs, while baiting and killing the wild dogs.
824:"Kerry Fox teaches directors about actors in Melbourne International Film Festival masterclass"
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as Anthony - James' amoral former friend who was with him when James drowned the young boy.
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received many positive reviews from critics on its Australian premiere. Ali Schnabel from
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Springboard production funding and features Reef Ireland in the lead role.
1137:"Going against the flow in Grant Scicluna's debut feature film Downriver"
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on 15 September 2015. It was released theatrically in Australia in 2016.
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919:"Short films to springboard emerging careers of three filmmaking teams"
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621:
List of lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender-related films of 2015
872:"Warrandyte locations to feature heavily in new Australian film"
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as Wayne - Paige's goodnatured, truck-driving new boyfriend.
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Lester Ellis, Jr. as Joe - Anthony's brutal older brother.
191:, produced by Happening Films. It is writer-director
1037:"Downriver Sells Out at MIFF – Extra Session Added!"
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Steve Mouzakis as Gianni - Anthony's abusive father.
967:"Downriver To World Premiere @ MIFF + New Trailer!"
741:"'Downriver' Casts Helen Morse & Robert Taylor"
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Lee Cormie as Trav - James' boyfriend in detention.
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1015:"MIFF 2015: the movies you have to see this year"
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945:"Screen Australia backs Blue Dog, Downriver"
379:Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF)
332:Filming began and completed in late 2014 in
689:"Short Cuts: Australian film industry news"
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260:The film has an ensemble cast featuring:
195:'s feature debut. The main cast includes
921:. Brisvanni Radio 1701AM. Archived from
897:"Gay Australian Film Claims World Prize"
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1111:"MIFF 2015 critics campus: Downriver"
1091:. Big Gay Picture Show. 27 April 2015
189:Melbourne International Film Festival
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1065:. Toronto Film Scene. Archived from
1039:. The Low Down Under. Archived from
969:. The Low Down Under. Archived from
179:is a 2015 Australian film funded by
387:Toronto International Film Festival
850:"Rare screen role for Helen Morse"
669:. Cinema Australia. 27 August 2014
643:. Screen Australia. Archived from
385:international premiere was at the
360:in 2012; it was developed through
14:
717:. Happening Films. Archived from
446:Screen Producers Australia Awards
377:The film had its premiere at the
1159:"SPA Awards finalists announced"
899:. Star Observer. 23 October 2012
312:as Rita - James' parole officer.
1232:2010s LGBTQ-related drama films
772:. MIFF Industry. Archived from
467:Best Feature Film (Jury Prize)
767:"PremFundPublicSLATEbackgR24e"
347:is an expansion of Scicluna's
1:
1227:Australian LGBT-related films
1063:"TIFF 2015 REVIEW: DOWNRIVER"
1017:. The New Daily. 30 July 2015
488:Best Performance by an Actor
450:Best Feature Film Production
1252:English-language drama films
1247:2010s English-language films
557:San Diego Out Film Festival
538:San Diego Out Film Festival
519:San Diego Out Film Festival
502:San Diego Out Film Festival
993:"Top 10 Picks of MIFF 2015"
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560:Best Breakout Performance
484:Asia Pacific Screen Awards
828:The Sydney Morning Herald
743:. FilmInk. Archived from
693:The Sydney Morning Herald
28:
1237:2015 LGBTQ-related films
541:Best Supporting Actress
464:MiFo LGBT Film Festival
803:Internet Movie Database
127:7 August 2015
1257:2010s Australian films
1222:Australian drama films
368:Release and reception
1069:on 23 September 2015
1043:on 23 September 2015
18:2015 Australian film
747:on 20 December 2014
1139:. The Conversation
925:on 3 February 2015
721:on 9 February 2015
647:on 3 February 2015
505:Best Feature Film
362:Screen Australia's
995:. The Urban Spoon
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393:Critical response
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973:on 8 July 2015
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799:"Plot Summary"
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1168:23 September
1166:. Retrieved
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1073:23 September
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148:Running time
120:Release date
85:Reef Ireland
15:
1163:Inside Film
856:30 December
808:30 December
783:30 December
725:30 December
715:"Downriver"
673:30 December
651:30 December
600:Best Actor
383:Downriver's
353:The Wilding
289:Helen Morse
205:Helen Morse
104:Anthony Cox
81:Helen Morse
56:Produced by
38:Directed by
1217:2015 films
1211:Categories
951:17 January
929:17 January
903:16 January
881:16 January
876:Herald Sun
751:16 January
699:16 January
627:References
604:Thom Green
596:Iris Prize
575:Iris Prize
494:Nominated
456:Nominated
358:Iris Prize
349:short film
340:Short film
334:Warrandyte
323:Production
268:Thom Green
152:99 minutes
131:2015-08-07
1197:Downriver
1143:14 August
1121:14 August
583:Kerry Fox
545:Kerry Fox
428:Festival
416:Accolades
398:Downriver
345:Downriver
274:Kerry Fox
201:Kerry Fox
176:Downriver
160:Australia
101:Edited by
76:Kerry Fox
24:Downriver
1095:9 August
1047:9 August
1021:9 August
999:9 August
977:9 August
834:9 August
615:See also
373:Premiere
165:Language
109:Music by
64:Starring
1115:The Age
437:Result
403:The Age
328:Filming
168:English
157:Country
129: (
431:Award
135: (
777:(PDF)
770:(PDF)
592:2016
571:2016
554:2016
535:2016
516:2016
499:2016
480:2015
461:2015
442:2015
425:Year
1202:IMDb
1170:2015
1145:2015
1123:2015
1097:2015
1075:2015
1049:2015
1023:2015
1001:2015
979:2015
953:2015
931:2015
905:2015
883:2014
858:2014
852:. IF
836:2015
810:2014
785:2014
753:2015
727:2014
701:2015
675:2014
653:2014
608:Won
587:Won
566:Won
549:Won
530:Won
511:Won
475:Won
256:Cast
211:Plot
187:and
137:MIFF
1200:at
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.