Comparative analysis: Coming-of-age films, 'Looking for Alabrandi'(2000) vs. 'Strictly ballroom' (1992)

Both Strictly Ballroom and Looking for Alibrandi are films which demonstrate the trails and tribulation of coming-of-age. The protagonist, Josie, in Looking for Alibrandi is attempting to come to terms with her cultural identity, meeting her father and the death of her friend. Whereas Strictly Ballroom protagonist, Scott, goes on a journey of wanting to express himself through dance, breaking the rules, discovering truths about his parents and helping a girl come to her full potential as his under trained new dance partner.

However, I will be attempting to compare the use of ethnic representation in these films. As Aquilla points out in his argument, “Characters such as Scott from Strictly Ballroom... are analysed as ‘White Australian’ protagonists who resolve their dramatic situation with assistance from Spanish-Australian and Greek Australian partners.” (Aquilla, 2000, p.104) The most apt example of this in the film is the scene in which Scott enters the backyard of his partner’s (Fran) father, whilst they are having a gathering. The lighting is dark and ominous and the music is robust and overwhelming, all creating a theme of anticipation as to whether or not Scott will be accepted into this situation.

On the contrary to this Looking for Alibrandi provides a look from inside the ethnic-Australian perspective instead of the Anglo interpretation of the ethnic which is more commonly seen. We follow the journey of Josie, who seems embarrassed by her Italian family and their traditions, just wanting to fit into the ‘normal’ Anglo-Australian society. By the end of the film she comes to except her family traditions and we see a backyard scene that is at once similar and contrasting to the aforementioned scene from Strictly Ballroom. Looking for Alibrandi scene is during the day, with bright lighting and jovial music, with long continual shots emphasising contentment. This contrast with the Strictly Ballroom scene that has sharp, quick dark shots of extreme close ups.

It is interesting that both these scenes take part in the backyard of the houses. As Simpson illuminates in her writing “Australian suburban ideology is inextricably bound up with specific notions of the backyard, so it is no surprise that backyards are often depicted in Australian films about suburbia.” (Simpson, 1999, p.25) Therefore it can be interpreted that ethnic representation is in both Strictly Ballroom and Looking for Alabrandi challenging the ideas of Anglo-Australians connection to the backyard stating a claim that ethnic-Australians have very similar connections, helping illustrate acceptance by its implications on Australian audiences.

References:

• Catherine Simpson (1999) ‘Suburban Subversions: Women’s Negotiation of Space in Contemporary Australian Cinema’, in Metro Magazine #118, pp.24-32

• Peiter Aquilia (2000) ‘Wog Drama and ‘White Multiculturalists’: The Role of Non Anglo-Australian Film and Television Drama in Shaping National Identity’ Originally published in Ruinard and Tilley (eds.), Fresh Cuts: Journal of Australian Studies no. 67, St. Lucia, UQP, 2000.

• Looking For Alibrandi, 2000, Dir. Kate Woods

• Strictly Ballroom, 1992, Dir. Baz Luhrmann

Concept Analysis: Americanisation

The concept of Americanisation in Australia can be viewed as a merging of the two cultural identities. As Phillip and Rodger Bell point out in their writing "America's culture has become an unavoidable presence" (Bell & Bell, 1998, p.6). This is clear to see when turning on the television or going to the cinema, with only 5% of money at the box office earned on Australian films, we can see the overwhelming amount of the American identity that we as a culture are absorbing and to a certain extent adopting. If we take the film maker Baz Lurhmann, we can see that the first feature film he made; Strictly Ballroom (Reid, 1999, p. 116), had a "confident sense of audience", meaning that it was made for a specific audience, in this case, the
Australian audience, with distinctive Australian humour, setting and values. However, if we then look at one of Lurhmann's later films, Moulin Rouge! (2001) we can see that the content is designed for a much wider demographic. It is Americanised, the storyline becomes formulaic and the big budget is clear to see when watching it. The benefits of this are clear to see in the difference in worldwide box office takings; Strictly Ballroom grossed $11,738,022 and Moulin Rouge! grossed $179,213,434 . Thats a difference of $167,475,412. This aids us in understanding why it is beneficial for Australian film makers to cross the hemishpere and create films for a more globalised audience because of "the sheer number of potential cinema-goers" (Reid, 1999, p.113) in America can be the difference between profit and loss for a film.
With the rapid increase of Americanisation in Australia, how do we then form our own individual culture and identity? If films like Strictly Ballroom, that has different forms of Australian culture and humour arn't as successful as Hollywoodised films, is it reasonable to succomb to american cinematic takeover?

As is pionted out in Bell and Bell's writing "The long argued question of Australian national identity is, of course, at the centre of debates around Americanisation." (Bell & Bell, 1996, p.9) Slowly the American culture is seeping through our cinema and television screens to distort our idea of national identity, our film makers are beginning to change their distinctly Australian films into the A-cultural Hollywood formula.


References:

• Philip Bell and Roger Bell, ‘Introduction: The Dilemmas of Americanisation’ in AmericaniZation and Australia, (eds) Phillip and Roger Bell, UNSW Press (1998), 1-14
  
• Mary Anne Reid, ‘Outside Hollywood’ in More Long Shots: Australian Cinema Success in the 90s (Sydney: Australian Film Commission, 1999), 190-1999, plus endnotes, 238-239
• www.boxofficemojo.com