Film Preview: The Dressmaker (2016)

Page Revisions:

(August 9, 2015) Original
(August 14, 2016) New Release Date (changed from “Coming Soon”)
(August 28, 2016) New Trailer (#2) / New Posters (#2-#4)

Release Date:

September 23, 2016

Synopsis:

From IMDb: “A glamorous woman returns to her small town in rural Australia. With her sewing machine and haute couture style, she transforms the women and exacts sweet revenge on those who did her wrong.”

Poster Rating: C- / C / D / C+

Review: (#1) A sophisticated woman arrives in a vast, dreary countryside. Fitting, but unoriginal.

(#2) Frocks galore. This design definitely evokes the title The Dressmaker, but little else. (#3) Adding the Liam Hemsworth to the poster doesn’t give it any depth. The whole affair is blocky, bulky, and boring. (#4) It may not be the freshest design, but its intent is clear and pointed: this is a woman who doesn’t care if she lays waste to all that she passes through.

Trailer Rating: C+ / B-

Review: (#1) There are elements of countless other films about disliked people who use their skills to encourage and entice a hostile community. There doesn’t seem to be much different here, but I applaud the writers for swapping the male-female dichotomy where the sexy young woman is the sexual conquest of the much older man. While the reverse could be interesting, it still smacks a bit of sexism.

(#2) XXXXX

Oscar Prospects:

It’s impossible to know without reviews how this film will do. While Kate Winslet could be a strong key at its direction, she’s had her fair share of misses the last few years and with Liam Hemsworth as her romantic counterpart, it may not be as good as it possibly could be.