''Romulus, My Father'' is a 2007 Australian drama film directed by

Richard Roxburgh Richard Roxburgh (born 23 January 1962) is an Australian actor, writer, producer, and director. He is the recipient of a number of accolades across film, television, and theatre, including three AACTA Awards (including AFI), three Logie Awards, ...

. Based on the

memoir A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobi ...

Raimond Gaita Raimond Gaita (born Raimund Gaita; 14 May 1946) is a German-born Australian philosopher and award-winning writer. He was, until 2011, foundation professor of philosophy at the Australian Catholic University and professor of moral philosophy at ...

, the film tells the story of Romulus (

Eric Bana Eric Banadinović, (born 9 August 1968), known professionally as Eric Bana (), is an Australian actor and comedian. He began his career in the sketch comedy series '' Full Frontal'' before gaining notice in the comedy drama '' The Castle'' (19 ...

) and his wife Christine (

Franka Potente Franka Potente (; born 22 July 1974) is a German actress. She first appeared in the comedy film '' After Five in the Forest Primeval'' (1995), for which she won a Bavarian Film Award for Best Young Actress. Her breakthrough came in 1998, when sh ...

), and their struggle in the face of great adversity to raise their son, Raimond (

Kodi Smit-McPhee Kodi Smit-McPhee (born 13 June 1996) is an Australian actor. He gained recognition as a child actor for his leading roles in ''The Road'' (2009) and '' Let Me In'' (2010). In 2021, Smit-McPhee garnered critical acclaim for his performance as Pe ...

). The film marks the directorial debut for Australian actor Richard Roxburgh. It was commended in the

Australian Film Critics Association The Australian Film Critics Association (AFCA), formerly Melbourne Film Critics’ Forum, is an Australian professional association A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organization, or professional socie ...

2007 Film Awards.

Plot

The film tells the story of Romulus Gaiţă, a Romanian immigrant to Australia after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and his struggle in the face of great adversity to bring up his son, Raimond. As close family members die around him Raimond has to deal with the deterioration of his father's mental health. It is a story of impossible love that ultimately celebrates the unbreakable bond between father and son.

Cast

as Romulus, the father of Raimond. *

as Raimond, the son of Romulus and Christine. *

as Christine, the mother of Raimond and the former wife of Romulus. *

Marton Csokas Marton Paul Csokas (, hu, Csókás Márton Pál; born 30 June 1966) is a Hungarian-New Zealand actor of film, stage, and television. A graduate of the Toi Whakaari drama school, he has worked extensively in Australia and Hollywood, along with ...

as Hora, a friend of Romulus. Hora becomes a temporary father figure to a young

while his father is in a

psychiatric hospital Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental health hospitals, behavioral health hospitals, are hospitals or wards specializing in the treatment of severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, dissociative ...

. *

Russell Dykstra Russell Dykstra (born 31 December 1966) is an Australian actor of screen, stage and TV. Early life Dykstra grew up in the Brisbane suburb of Calamvale. Dykstra first appeared on stage at age 10 in a theatre production of ''Toad of Toad Hall ...

as Mitru *

Jacek Koman Jacek Koman (born 15 August 1956) is a Polish actor and singer. Early life Koman was born in Bielsko-Biała, Poland, to actors Halina Koman (née Dobrowolska; born 3 January 1923) and Adam Koman (24 December 1922 – 1 December 2005), and ca ...

as Vacek *

Alethea McGrath Alethea Ada McGrath (1 June 1920 – 9 February 2016) was an Australian actress and comedian. She played Jocasta Nu in '' Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones''. Her roles on television included Dot Farrar in ''Prisoner'' and three d ...

as Mrs Lillie *

Terry Norris Terry is a unisex given name, derived from French Thierry and Theodoric. It can also be used as a diminutive nickname for the names Teresa or Theresa (feminine) or Terence or Terrier (masculine). People Male * Terry Albritton (1955–2005), Am ...

as Tom Lillie *

Esme Melville Esme Melville (born Esme Grace Mount-Melville, 23 July 1918 – 14 September 2006) was an Australian theatre, television and film actress. At the Tropfest awards for 2003 she won Best Actor – Female for her role of Granma in the short film, '' ...

as Miss Collard

Locations

Ballarat, Victoria Ballarat ( ) is a city in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census, Ballarat had a population of 116,201, making it the third largest city in Victoria. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. Within months of Vic ...

, Australia *

Bendigo, Victoria Bendigo ( ) is a city in Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2019, Bendigo had an urban populat ...

, Australia *

Carisbrook, Victoria Carisbrook is a town in Victoria, Australia, located on the Pyrenees Highway, east of the regional and local government centre of Maryborough, in the Shire of Central Goldfields. At the 2016 census, Carisbrook had a population of 1115. Carisbr ...

, Australia *

Castlemaine, Victoria Castlemaine ( , Variation in Australian English, non-locally also ) is a small city in Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, in the Goldfields region of Victoria, Goldfields region about 120 kilometres (75 miles) northwest by road from ...

, Australia *

Maldon, Victoria Maldon is a town in Victoria, Australia, in the Shire of Mount Alexander local government area. It has been designated "Australia's first notable town" and is notable for its 19th-century appearance, maintained since gold-rush days. At the 2 ...

, Australia *

Maryborough, Victoria Maryborough () is a town in Victoria, Australia, on the Pyrenees Highway, north of Ballarat and northwest of Melbourne, in the Shire of Central Goldfields. At the 2016 census, it had a population of 7,921. History The area was originally ...

, Australia

Soundtrack

* "

Real Wild Child "Wild One" or "Real Wild Child" is an Australian rock and roll song written by Johnny Greenan, Johnny O'Keefe, and Dave Owens. While most sources state that O'Keefe was directly involved in composing the song, this has been questioned by others. ...

" (

Johnny O'Keefe John Michael O'Keefe (19 January 1935 – 6 October 1978) was an Australian rock and roll singer whose career began in the 1950s. Some of his hits include " Wild One" (1958), " Shout!" and "She's My Baby". In his twenty-year career, O'Keefe rel ...

, Dave Owens, John Greenan) —

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as "rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis made ...

* "

My Prayer "My Prayer" is a 1939 popular song with music by salon violinist Georges Boulanger and lyrics by Carlos Gomez Barrera and Jimmy Kennedy. It was originally written by Boulanger with the title ''Avant de mourir'' (Before dying) 1926. The lyrics f ...

" —

The Platters The Platters was an American vocal group formed in 1952. They are one of the most successful vocal groups of the early rock and roll era. Their distinctive sound bridges the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition and the new burgeoning genre. The ac ...

Awards

* Winner Golden Tripod Award,

Australian Cinematographers Society The Australian Cinematographers Society (ACS) is a not-for-profit organisation founded in 1958 for the purpose of providing a forum for Australian cinematographers to further develop their skills through mutual co-operation. Location Its Nati ...

—2007 * Winner

AFI Award The Australian Film Institute (AFI) was founded in 1958 as a non-profit organisation devoted to developing an active film culture in Australia and fostering engagement between the general public and the Australian film industry. It is responsi ...

for Best Film, Best Lead Actor (

), Best Supporting Actor (

), and Young Actor's Award (

) – 2007 * Nominated

for Best Cinematography (

Geoffrey Simpson Geoffrey Simpson is an Australian cinematographer. He has received critical praise for his work on films including '' Shine'', ''Oscar and Lucinda'' (1997) and ''Romulus, My Father'' (2007). He has won Australian Film Institute awards for Bes ...

), Best Costume Design, Best Direction, Best Editing, Best Lead Actor (

), Best Lead Actress (

), Best Original Music Score, Best Production Design, Best Screenplay, Best Sound, Best Supporting Actor (

), Best Supporting Actress (

) – 2007 * Won Australian Screen Sound Guild Award for Best Achievement in Sound for Film Sound Recording—2007 * Nominated Australian Screen Sound Guild Award for Best Achievement in Sound for Film Sound Design, Best Achievement in Sound for Film Sound Mixing, Feature Film Soundtrack of the Year—2007 * Won

FCCA Award The Film Critics Circle of Australia (FCCA) is an association of cinema critics and reviewers. It includes journalists in "media, television, major national and state papers, radio, national and state, online and freelance writers, Australian ...

for Best Actor in Supporting Role (

) – 2008 * Won Special Achievement Award, FCAA to

—2008 * Nominated FCAA Award for Best Actor (

), Best Actor in Supporting Role (

), Best Cinematography, Best Director, Best Editing, Best Film, Best Music Score—2008 * Nominated

Young Artist Awards The Young Artist Award (originally known as the Youth in Film Award) is an accolade presented by the Young Artist Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1978 to honor excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young ...

, Best Performance in an International Feature Film (

)

Box office

''Romulus, My Father'' grossed $2,589,674 at the box office in Australia.''Film Victoria – Australian Films at the Australian Box Office''
/ref>

References

External links

* *
''Romulus My Father''
at Oz Movies *
''Romulus, My Father''
at the

National Film and Sound Archive The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), known as ScreenSound Australia from 1999 to 2004, is Australia's audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting and providing access to a national co ...

Interview with the cast at the Australian movie premiere on WHO.com
{{Australian Film Institute Award for Best Film 1990-2009 2007 films Australian biographical drama films Australian coming-of-age drama films 2007 biographical drama films Films based on works by Australian writers Films directed by Richard Roxburgh Films about psychiatry Films about suicide Films set in 1962 Films shot in Melbourne Films set in Victoria (Australia) 2007 directorial debut films 2007 drama films Films about father–son relationships Films about families 2000s English-language films

Plot

Cast

Locations

Soundtrack

Awards

Box office

See also

References

External links