MOVIE: CEDAR BOYS

Funny how movies about the western suburbs (Little Fish, West) are rarely screened east of Newtown. Serhat Caradee’s masterful debut is a well deserved breakout, succeeding both as powerful drama and exposé of Sydney’s cultural and class divide. Set in the south west, three young Lebanese men dream of a better life, and it’s the good intentions but misplaced tactics of Tarak (Les Chantery) which lead him to crime and tragedy. The ending is one we can probably spot, this is a fairly conventional morality tale. But it’s told with expertise and a fine hand at ratcheting up the tension, and it’s the “skips” (Rachel Taylor) not the “Lebs” who are the heaviest and most deeply flawed characters. The final scene surprises, it’s both balletic and beautiful. It will leave you drained. (RE)