Review and photos: Blaze at Sydney Film Festival

June 20, 2022

Addy Fong went to the premiere of Blaze at Sydney Film Festival and got some shots from the red carpet. Here are her pics and her review of the movie:

When I heard the line, ‘healing isn’t linear’ uttered in Del Kathryn Barton’s Blaze in reference to the process of coping with personal trauma, it really struck a chord with me. Trauma or tragedy, in whatever form it takes, requires time to process and isn’t always easy to comprehend. For some, therapy may take the form of creative practice, be it art-making, music, or dance – all methods I’ve been told have been successful in one’s rehabilitation into ‘normality’, whatever that means.

For many creatives like Barton, a practicing artist who’s exhibited in major art galleries all around Australia, creative practice is the method of how one processes the world around them. From the first frame, Blaze is a visual assault on the senses matching well with Barton’s self described maximalist aesthetic. Her feature film debut is bold containing a mixture of live action, animation and puppetry, the film is encompassed by a dazzling set of bright colours and intriguing textures that invite the viewer to explore the frame and uncover the layers of meaning hidden within.

Opening with a powerful scene of twelve-year-old Blaze (Julia Savage) witnessing a horrific crime involving violence against a woman (Yael Stone) in broad daylight, this coming-of-age story speaks about the silencing of women, namely young women, in our society. Barton portrays the helplessness felt by many well, realistically referencing the process of witness testimony by showing young Blaze dragged through the court system and despite being the sole witness of a crime, is labelled as an unreliable due to her age and imaginative personality. It’s concerning when a child’s account is labelled as un-credible and false, when worth is placed on the social standing of a male perpetrator who will often get away with their crimes without consequence, especially horrid when witnesses are often in a state of shock after witnessing something traumatic and unforeseen.

In our male-dominated society, the silencing and threatening of women and children on their own personal safety, whether perceived or real, is something that, at least from my own experience, feels incredibly difficult to express to those outside your own circles without sounding almost insane. It’s a concern that even in broad daylight women need to cautiously walk the streets aware of their personal safety, just in case something may happen to them. It’s a concern that news is announced regarding plans for CCTV cameras and lights to be installed in parks of NSW to help women feel safe in parks at night. It’s a concern to know that personally, as a woman, there are times when we may feel unsafe regardless of time of day. More often than not the feeling of safety isn’t related to a particular time of day but instead to the presence of a particular person that may cause a feeling of unease. I’m reminded here of a haunting statistic I’ve heard often: victims are often known to their abusers. When trust is broken and the result a generalised mistrust of a particular group of people due to the actions of a select few the hurt runs deep.

This is shown in the film when Luke (Simon Baker), Blaze’s father, in his effort to help care and support her after the traumatic event has occurred, feels helpless both as a single dad and also a man who is unable protect his daughter from the horrors of the world. It’s a different kind of helplessness, a debilitating one that has ripples beyond merely the victim of a crime but those associated with them, their family and loved ones.

In her post screening Q&A Barton remarked that the film was from personal experience which I found this to be incredibly sad, to realise that a woman will never feel truly safe whilst in a man’s world, where this unspoken threat on one’s safety always lingers. Minority groups such as people of colour, women, those belonging to LGBTQIA+ community, those living in economically disadvantaged situations, are all groups who are not of influence in the world we all currently live in. Thankfully is being realised in more recent times. This said, these groups need not only empathy but also a platform or a voice both onscreen and off where they are actually heard and validated.

Perhaps Barton’s Blaze, described as a feminist film, could be seen as a step in the right direction as the film addresses these issues through Blaze’s story. Through her art making and filmmaking practice we can see that for Barton, and for many creatives like her, the only way of processing events that have happened is to order in order to express one’s true self. I applaud the bravery and boldness in telling such stories with such strength and courage.

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Review and photos by Addy Fong.