Jindabyne centers around the marriage of Stewart (Gabriel Byrne) and Claire
(Laura Linney). As the film unfolds scene by scene, we discover that
Stewart and Claire have unresolved matters in their marriage stemming
from Claire's intense postpartum depression after the birth of their
son. Claire constantly strives to be the mother she wasn't when her son
was born. Stewart finds himself in the middle of his life, wondering
where his marriage is and what kind of a man he has become. The film
draws us into this domestic life, which seems to be in a kind of
stasis.
When Stewart goes away on an annual fishing trip with his friends,
however, this stasis ends, bringing their wounds to the forefront. An
incident followed by a collective decision by the men ignite a crisis
for Stewart and his friends, as well as their wives and girlfriends.
Ultimately, all of their secrets and deceptions are brought out into
the light, along with a piercing question: What kind of men would make
such a decision? For Stewart and Claire, this question forces them to
face where they are wounded and decide ultimately what they will do and
how they will move forward.
This story unfolds in the Australian outback in a little town called
Jindabyne. The locations for this film are both stunning and haunting.
Filmed entirely with natural light, the film has a sensibility to it
that reminds the viewer of Malick, but what Ray Lawrence, the director,
does with the landscape is wholly original. The vastness of the
outback, the desolation of it, the beauty of it, guides the characters
in a way. This approach casts the landscape as a kind of character all
unto itself. Its secret and sacred places try to warn the characters
against the tragedy that awaits them. Some of them can sense this, but
other cannot because their lives have caused them to dull their
sensitivity to the beauty around them and what it wants to tell them.
Each scene of the films unfolds the way it needs to, for how long it
needs to. Lawrence doesn't seem to be interested in making sure the
audience is "entertained" at all times. Rather, his concern seems to be
with the emotional truth of each scene and what that truth means for
the characters. Lawrence leads us, and them, towards a conclusion that
is utterly profound and moving, while at the same not heavy handed or
emotionally manipulative.
One of the highlights of watching this film at Telluride was the
presence of lead actress, Laura Linney. After the film was screened she
answered questions about how it was made and how she created her
character, Claire. One of the most interesting things she had to say
involved the director's decision to only use natural light for the
film. He made this choice, she explained, so that their performances
could shine through and be the centerpiece of the story. This decision,
while risky, imbued the film with beauty and a sensibility that is not
often seen in the cinema.