''Goldstone'' is a 2016 Australian
crime
In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...
thriller film
Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre ...
directed by
Ivan Sen
Ivan Sen (born 1972) is an Indigenous Australian filmmaker. He is a director, screenwriter and cinematographer, as well as an editor, composer and sound designer. He is co-founder and director of Bunya Productions.
Early life
Ivan Sen was born ...
. It is a sequel to ''
Mystery Road'' (2013) and stars
Aaron Pedersen
Aaron Pedersen is an Aboriginal Australian television and film actor. He is known for many film and television roles, in particular as Detective Jay Swan in the film '' Mystery Road'', its sequel '' Goldstone'', and spin-off television series. ...
,
Alex Russell,
Jacki Weaver
Jacqueline Ruth Weaver (born 25 May 1947) is an Australian theatre, film and television actress. Weaver emerged in the 1970s as a symbol of the Australian New Wave through her work in Ozploitation films such as '' Stork'' (1971), ''Alvin Purp ...
,
David Wenham
David Wenham (born 21 September 1965) is an Australian actor who has appeared in film, television and theatre. He is known for his roles as Faramir in ''The Lord of the Rings'' film trilogy, Friar Carl in ''Van Helsing'', Dilios in ''300'' and ...
and
David Gulpilil
David Dhalatnghu Gulpilil (1 July 1953 – 29 November 2021), known professionally as David Gulpilil and posthumously (at his family's request, to avoid naming the dead) as David Dalaithngu for three days, was an Indigenous Australian actor ...
. It was released in Australia on 7 July 2016. According to the film's end credits, it was largely shot on location in the small town of
Middleton, Queensland
Middleton is a rural locality in the Shire of Winton, Queensland, Australia. In the Middleton had a population of 9 people.
Geography
The locality is on the Kennedy Developmental Road, northwest of the state capital Brisbane and southeast of ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
.
Plot
Three years after exposing the corruption in his hometown of
Winton, Queensland
Winton is a town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Shire of Winton in Central West Queensland, Australia. It is northwest of Longreach, Queensland, Longreach. The main industries of the area are sheep and cattle raising. Th ...
, the
Indigenous
Indigenous may refer to:
*Indigenous peoples
*Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention
*Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band
*Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...
detective Jay Swan is sent to the small mining town of Goldstone to find a missing Asian tourist. He is pulled over for driving under the influence by a young local cop, Josh, who informs the town's corrupt mayor, Maureen.
Jay is asleep in a
motel
A motel, also known as a motor hotel, motor inn or motor lodge, is a hotel designed for motorists, usually having each room entered directly from the parking area for motor vehicles rather than through a central lobby. Entering dictionaries ...
caravan when it's shot up by two men, one with an eye patch. When Josh arrives, Jay tells him of his case.
Josh tells him the motel management is furious and wants Jay to leave. Josh takes him to a remote off-grid shelter.
Josh goes to the local mine, Furnace Creek, to meet with the mine's supervisor, Johnny, who attempts to bribe him to help Furnace Creek expand their operations. Johnny then meets with Maureen, who is trying to help him get approval from the local
Aboriginal land council
Land councils, also known as Aboriginal land councils, or land and sea councils, are Australian community organisations, generally organised by region, that are commonly formed to represent the Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australians ...
by bribing the land council's head, Tommy, to allow the use of the land.
Jay meets with a local
Aboriginal elder
Australian Aboriginal elders are highly respected people within Australia and their respective Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. An Elder has been defined as "someone who has gained recognition as a custodian of knowledge and l ...
, Jimmy, in his search for the missing Asian tourist. Jimmy leads him to Furnace Creek.
Jay sneaks past Furnace Creek's security checkpoint and observes several young Asian women disembarking from a plane and climbing into a van. The women are being forced into
prostitution
Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in Sex work, sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, n ...
to pay off their debts. As Jay returns to his car, he is detained overnight by Furnace Creek security, and the next morning, Johnny attempts to intimidate him.
Upon returning home, Jay is visited by Josh, who tells him Maureen has summoned Jay to meet her for tea. Jay complies, and Maureen subtly warns him to stop his investigation.
Johnny and Maureen hold a press conference where they announce the mine's expansion and make an ostentatious show of having council approval. However, Jimmy walks out, denying them his signature of approval.
Jay receives an anonymous call and collects one of the girls' passports from the caller, then notices Josh's car. He follows Josh to the local creek, where Jimmy's body is hanging from a tree. Jay suspects foul play, but Josh states that Tommy witnessed the suicide.
Josh goes to the local bar/brothel, where the Asian girls are being kept. He befriends a prostitute called Mei and tells her to contact him if she needs help.
Tommy visits Josh, and confesses to killing Jimmy; he tells Josh about the corrupt activities of Maureen, Johnny, and the thugs who work as hitmen for Furnace Creek. Jay consults the man who found the passport and explores the area where it was found. There he finds a skeleton he assumes are the remains of the woman he was assigned to find.
Josh receives a missed call message from Mei. When he arrives at the brothel all the girls have gone. Interrogating the bartender, Josh is told they are in a trailer in the desert.
Josh first visits Maureen, who is anxiously shredding paperwork, and demands that she put him in touch with the head of the criminal operations. She reluctantly agrees to make the call.
Josh arrives at the trailer, seeking the women, but finds it empty. The thugs arrive, ambush Josh, and force him to dig his own grave. Jay, who has surreptitiously followed Josh, shoots at the thugs from a sniper's perch, incapacitating some and forcing them all to flee. Jay then enlists Josh to track down the thugs and rescue the women.
Jay and Josh drive at the Furnace Creek site and, after an intense shootout with the thugs, discover the women's whereabouts. Jay sees Johnny's plane fleeing the mines and chases it, while Josh finds and rescues the women.
Jay arrives at the airfield but is intercepted by a black armed guard, whose gunshots cause Jay's vehicle to crash while Johnny escapes. Jay and the guard stand off but decide to spare one another.
Later, at Jay's remote shelter, Josh tells Jay the federal authorities have taken over the case, retrieved the women, and begun an investigation into the corruption. Additionally, Maureen has skipped town.
Josh says he has requested a transfer to somewhere near the ocean where he can "shake off the dust" (corruption) of the outback. Jay bids him goodbye and drives away from Goldstone, into the desert, and retraces his visit with Jimmy to their ancestral site.
Cast
*
Aaron Pedersen
Aaron Pedersen is an Aboriginal Australian television and film actor. He is known for many film and television roles, in particular as Detective Jay Swan in the film '' Mystery Road'', its sequel '' Goldstone'', and spin-off television series. ...
as Jay Swan
*
Alex Russell as Josh Waters
*
Jacki Weaver
Jacqueline Ruth Weaver (born 25 May 1947) is an Australian theatre, film and television actress. Weaver emerged in the 1970s as a symbol of the Australian New Wave through her work in Ozploitation films such as '' Stork'' (1971), ''Alvin Purp ...
as Maureen the Mayor
*
Cheng Pei-pei
Cheng Pei-pei (born 6 January 1946) is a Chinese actress, who is considered cinema's first female action hero. She is known for her performance in the 1966 King Hu ''wuxia'' film ''Come Drink with Me'', as well as her portrayal of Jade Fox in t ...
as Mrs Lao
*
David Gulpilil
David Dhalatnghu Gulpilil (1 July 1953 – 29 November 2021), known professionally as David Gulpilil and posthumously (at his family's request, to avoid naming the dead) as David Dalaithngu for three days, was an Indigenous Australian actor ...
as Jimmy
*
Michelle Lim Davidson
Michelle Lim Davidson (born 23 July 1987) is an Australian actress. She got her break in television starring on the skit show '' Ben Elton Live from Planet Earth'' in 2011. From 2012 she was a presenter on '' Play School'', a long running Austr ...
as Mei
*
David Wenham
David Wenham (born 21 September 1965) is an Australian actor who has appeared in film, television and theatre. He is known for his roles as Faramir in ''The Lord of the Rings'' film trilogy, Friar Carl in ''Van Helsing'', Dilios in ''300'' and ...
as Johnny
*
Michael Dorman
Michael Dorman (born 26 April 1981) is a New Zealand actor, best known for his starring roles as NASA astronaut Gordo Stevens in the Apple TV+ original science fiction space drama series ''For All Mankind'' and as John Tavner in the comedy-drama ...
as Patch
*
Kate Beahan
Kate Beahan (born 12 October 1974) is an Australian film actress.
Beahan was born in Perth. She appeared mostly in movies and TV series in Australia. Her best-known American film role was playing Sister Willow Woodward in the 2006 horror remak ...
as Pinky
*
Max Cullen
Max Cullen (born 29 April 1940) is an Australian stage and screen actor. He has appeared in many Australian films and television series but is best known for his role in the film ''Spider and Rose'' and the television series ''The Flying Doctors ...
as Old Timer
*
Tom E. Lewis
Tom E. Lewis (traditional name: Balang Lewis; 25 August 1958 – 10 May 2018) was an Australian actor and musician. He was an Indigenous Australian from the Murrungun people. His first major role was the title role in the 1978 Fred Schepisi film ' ...
as Tommy
*
Cameron Ambridge
Cameron Ambridge (born 28 May 1978) is an Australian stuntman in the film and television industry.
Life and career
Cameron was born in Brisbane and grew up in the country town of Beaudesert, later moving to the Gold Coast where he worked at Mo ...
as Security Guard
Release
The film had its premiere at the
Sydney Film Festival
The Sydney Film Festival is an annual competitive film festival held in Sydney, Australia, usually over 12 days in June. A number of awards are given, the top one being the Sydney Film Prize.
the festival's director is Nashen Moodley.
Histo ...
on 8 June 2016.
It was released in Australia on 7 July 2016
and re-released on 2 March 2018. Its release for Blu-ray and DVD sales took place on 11 September 2018.
Reception
Box office
''Goldstone'' grossed $87,639 in the United States and Canada and $562,713 in other territories for a worldwide total of $650,352,
plus $11,987 with home video sales,
against a production budget of $2 million.
[
]
Critical response
On review aggregator
A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, the film has an approval rating of 76% based on 37 reviews, with an average rating of 7.07/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "''Goldstone'' weaves socially conscious themes through its procedural thriller plot outline, with visually thrilling, solidly crafted results." Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
, which uses a weighted average
The weighted arithmetic mean is similar to an ordinary arithmetic mean (the most common type of average), except that instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others. The ...
, assigned a score of 78 out of 100, based on 10 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
Accolades
References
External links
*
*
*
{{Ivan Sen
Mystery Road
2016 films
Neo-Western films
Films set in Queensland
Films shot in Queensland
Australian crime thriller films
2016 crime thriller films
Australian sequel films
Films directed by Ivan Sen
2010s English-language films
Screen Australia films
Transmission Films films
Films about Aboriginal Australians