Baz Luhrmann’s Australia Movie Trailer

Posted on Monday, May 19th, 2008 by Peter Sciretta

Australia

Even though his stories are not usually something typical of interest to me, I have always loved Baz Luhrmann for his visuals. His new film Australia is a period love story, but the beautiful cinematography immediately grabbed hold of my inner cinephile heart. That said, I’m not sure I’ll like this film as much as his previous efforts. Interesting bit of trivia, supposedly Heath Ledger was set to star in this film, but dropped out to play The Joker in The Dark Knight instead. Russell Crowe was also attached as the lead but left the movie during pre-production. I would love to hear what you guys think of the new trailer in the comments below.

You can also watch the new trailer in High Definition on Apple.com.

Official Plot Synopsis: A romantic action-adventure set in northern Australia prior to World War II, Australia centers on an English aristocrat (Nicole Kidman) who inherits a ranch the size of Maryland. When English cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle driver (Hugh Jackman) to drive 2000 head of cattle across hundreds of miles of the country’s most unforgiving land, only to still face the bombing of Darwin, Australia by the Japanese forces that had attacked Pearl Harbor only months earlier. With his new film, Luhrmann is painting on a vast canvas, creating a cinematic experience that brings together romance, drama, adventure and spectacle.

Baz Luhrmann’s Australia hits theaters on November 14th 2008.

Comments

thomas more

Apparently, Nicole Kidman is getting ready to play Michael Jackson

Captain_Howdy

I'm Australian and that looks like a typical Aussie bore-fest. It probably won't make much money over here. Zzzzz. Looking gorgeous is one thing - telling an interesting story is another. I hope I'm wrong, but I sense a flop. Especially with the ego-centric title.

Captain Awesome

This is looking great.

Seeing that shot of the Blue Mountains only made me miss them.

:)

M&Co

Looks incredible

Furion

After seeing the trailer,i must say it looks like its going to be boring. Being an Australian myself, i think they could have chosen a better topic to base a film on. Having two major Australian celebrities in this film will be the only reason people will go see it. Just my thoughts....

Bob

sorry but the trailer was about to put me to sleep. plus nicole kidman is box office poison these days

Robert

I just feel like I've seen all of that before. Numerous times...
Same shit, different country.

Peter R

mmmmm.....Wolverine...wait what?

cellchild

it's like romancing with stone only better

Ben

Meh...

@ Captain Awesome.... They weren't the Blue Mountains.

Jr. Said Monkey

I'm pretty sure the best part about this film would be the score, not the script nor the talent

brian

looks well-crafted and much more appealing than Atonement which was a self-conscious bore. I'm sure Baz won't disappoint. Remember, he 're-invented the musical' [Janet Maslin bitchily said he re-invented the headache].Thankfully Russell Crowe departed this project otherwise i wouldn't go anywhere near it. Kidman and Jackman could sure do with a hit, and it should be very satisfying for romantics - speaking of romance: a huge plug for the June DVD release of Joshua Logan's 'Fanny' with Leslie Caron, Chevalier, Boyer and Horst Bucholtz - what a dream of a movie. Back to 'Australia' - think i'll get out my copy of 'The Sundowners' to get in the mood..

danno

At last a chance for Kid/Jackman to ditch their phony American accents and get back to their roots.

Alex C

Anyone else notice the score that starts at about 28 seconds is Ennio Morricone's score from one of his Dollars movies? (It's either Fistful of Dollars or For a Few Dollars more, I can't place it right now).
Looks like Tarantino isn't the only one using film scores from the spaghetti westerns of the 60's.

A. J.

I like Jackman but this movie
looks B - O - R - I - N - G - !

Meli

Alright, so maybe it's because I'm girl, but I'm interested.
Of course, I am a fan of the director and the lead actors, so I've
been ready to give this movie a chance for ages.

Jojo

This is a lock for best oscar for cinematography.

Simon

Nicole Kidman is one of my favorite actors, I do hope she does well in this role.

This looks like a better version of Atonement...

Aaron

Looks great. Can't wait to buy the Blu-Ray. It will rest between Brazil and American Pie on my shelf.

Chimaera

I liked it...I have a love/hate relationship with Kidman but I really like Hugh and I'm interested to see how well they work together on the big screen.

mikel

The plot sounds like a re imagining of Howard Hawk's 'Red River'...

Eliza

I'm at least interested, mainly because of Luhrmann. And it does *look* beautiful, so I'll at least go see it. Although, I borderline can't stand Hugh Jackman.....

Oh, and @ Alex C: just because the music is in the trailer doesn't mean it will be included in the score of the film. It's very common practice to use a popular piece of score from another film in trailers.

Ciji

A movie about Australia starring actual Australians?!? And real indigenous Austrailians/Aborigines?!?!? Has Hollywood suddenly taken its Logic Pills?!?

I didn't know Japan bombed Australia... so I'm gonna check this out.

dan

Wow, unless a movie has The Jokers cock all over it or it's based on a vampire and a teenager falling in love, you guys cant accept shit. How narrowly minded is society now a days?

Typical.

Mick

lol at "Dan's" comment with much agreement

Gary

Alex C: the music in the last piece of the trailer is actually from 'Henry V', written by Patrick Doyle. It seems a lot of people are confusing Morricone's 'Ecstacy of Gold' with this incredibly moving gem of a score (which, presumably, is why it has been used here to promote what will hopefully be a classic to come).

Eliza

@ Gary: THANK YOU!! I spent like an hour last night trying to figure out just which piece of score that was, to no avail. I love Henry V, how could I forget? And I used to have that soundtrack on my comp, which has sadly now busted....bummer.

cj

The cinematography does look great but the acting, not so much. I laughed out loud at "we can't let them win" Oh dear.
Doesn't look any less theatrical than Moulin Rouge, thought he was finished with that.
Pity as the bombing of Darwin is interesting and should be told well.
Catherine Martin is very clever though.

Courtney

Does anyone know what music is used at the beginning of the tralier? It is a piano playing.

Gary

@ Courtney: I think the music at the very beginning is from 'The Balcony Scene', from another of Luhrmann's movies - 'Romeo & Juliet', scored by Craig Armstrong. But there's a few other chords mixed in. Hope that helps.

Zebraoz

After being away from my country for 17 years, living in the US, Scotland, China, Malaysia ... just this little preview already makes me decide it's time to return. Tis the ONLY decent place now. FYI; that is the Kimberleys in WA, not the Blue Mountains (most Aussies never been there). I once was a Police Office in Darwin and yes, it was bombed - 350 times don't you all know? I am not a Kidman fan ... although I appreciate what she's done ... but I am a fan of that "wide brown land". Seems we are all too sophisticated now to cherish our heritage. But, the world certainly will .. and wants to come there in their millions.

Minas

Good acting team plus good scenario...should be interesting

linus

Boooooooorrrrring!!!
We don't need this kind of movie for Australia! It looks like it's glorifying my country's past. It's a bit like some frontier film about the USA. I trust Baz Luhrmann has the sense to make it real and sensitive to the indigenous people of our land. Well, I hope he has.

Bully

It's got a real retro feel. Like the big screen block busters of the 1940's and 50's. I like it! It's NOT an American western. Certainly not considering the WW11 background, it just seems to have that wide landscape and big music score feel. The bombing of Darwin is something most Australians were not told about during the war because it would have freaked people out too much. Broome on the west coast of Aus was bombed too. The Japanese chased Dutch flying boats escaping from what is now Indonesia. (Then the Dutch East Indies) The wrecks of these boats can be seen at low tide to this day. I'm about to spend another 2 months in the Outback. it's a VERY special place. There is nowhere like it on the planet. Go Baz!!

tomato

anyone know what song from henry v? thanks so much!

James Radford

It's from Kenneth Brannaghs Henry V score by Patrick Doyle

It's from the St Crispins day speech

Caspian

The cinematic value of this film alone is enough for me to want to see it. From what I've heard this is a really intelligently thought out piece done in a popular epic fashion, so I think it'll work quite well. Its also the first major film to deal with the Bombing of Darwin AT ALL which makes it even more interesting. I was lucky enough to go one set of this one and it looks great!

Max

The Blue Mountains? I didn't know the Japanese bombed them during World War II... :S I think it might be the Kimberlys somehow.

Marsh

I really wanted to like it but it looks so boring and a bit camp too. It could be embarrassing... It could have been a lot better with more attractive casting - Cate Blanchett is a superb Australian actress who could have brought a lot of interest to this film. I'm afraid that like most people having seen a fair shair of Nicole Kidman flops over the last few years, I've very reluctant to see anything that she's starring in. It's an enormous break for Hugh Jackman though, so good luck to him.

nuge

I like the idea of a movie about Australia but it looks like this one just uses all the old stereotypes, and as everyone said, it looks a bit boring and camp. Still I guess its good they finally let people know about Darwin, it doesn't seem to be very well known. I hope the storyline is on par with the budget and the hype!

Shannon

Well, I say it looks great! Baz has done it again, another movie to grab my heart! The cinematography and score looks to be another hit in my book, and I can't wait to see/hear the whole story! For sure a chic flick, but as a women I say "Bring it on Baz!".

Cheese!

moviewatcher

I am a fan of epic movies and sweeping cinematography, and to me the trailers look like I shouldn't be disappointed. Adding history to the mix makes it even more appealing to me. I don't go to movies to receive some great euphoric intellectual edification from the script...I go to be entertained. If the whole movie is filled with wonderful scenery and the storyline is at least plausible and followable, then I will be happy with it.

Lesley

Good or bad, this is going to be a goldmine for aussie tourism...check out the new baz ads based on the film http://media.smh.com.au/?category=Breaking%20Ne...

MMO

Breathtaking scenery. Ravaging war. Heartbreaking love story. Eye candy leading man. Our gorgeous country on the big screen. Dorothea McKellar said it best, 'I love a sunburnt country'. I can't wait to see this. I think it looks spectacular and there is very little that Hugh Jackman can't do. He has a Midas touch. Put him with Baz Luhrmann and what could there not be to love? For all the Aussie's that think this might be 'embarrassing'... did you watch The Castle lately? Hilarious, but humiliating! And, I think it's about time that we used the rich but short history of our nation to tell a timeless tale of love and hardship like only the Aussie outback can bring. I AM! Are you? Australian.

Judes

Why do we have to knock Aussies that do well overseas?? I'm proud that Nicole & Hugh have done so well! You know what, the Americans just love these two & so its a smart move by Bazz. This movie might appeal more to females but I feel all Australians need to find out more about our past & I didn't know so much about the Darwin bombings until my family visited there a few year ago. It is a story that needs to be told!

Fiona Lake

Interesting discussion - clearly the Australian cultural cringe is alive and well. Some people obviously think every movie featuring Aussie landscapes is the same (which would be like saying that every film situated in a city is the same). Some clearly believe our rural heritage is embarrassing, and some think it doesn't exist any more. Australia has the largest cattle stations in the world ('Australia' was filmed on one of them, Carlton Hill), it is the largest exporter of beef (bovine-related activities feature in the film), and yet it is the most urbanised country. Most Australians don't know anything beyond the SE corner (confusing the Blue Mountains for the Kimberleys, more than 4,000km to the northwest, is a great example), any more than they know that Broome and Darwin were bombed by the Japanese (but it wasn't until they made the mistake of bombing Pearl Harbour, a while later, that the U.S. started taking a lot more notice).
A great story, some of our very best actors, stunning but rarely filmed scenery, great cinematography, attention to authentic detail (this is no cheap cut-corners production) - and some interesting history to boot - what's not to like about 'Australia'?

allan crew

for me, the trailer does not tell me why I would want to see the film. i don't get a sense of the story, i am not a fan of kidman, nor jackman or even brown.

i know the japanese bombed darwin.

i love australia, especially the "outback".

it is a given that the production values are high

but the trailer seems to be "telling me", rather than "engaging me".

the dialogue, such as it is, sounds forced, (over acted).

there seems to me, to be a gap between the film that baz wanted to make
and the film that the public at large will want to see.

the divide i expect is probably about a $120,000,000 plus marketing.

hope i'm wrong.

i have a friend working in the tourism industry in north queensland for over 35 years, who could point ta in the right direction in about five minutes for about a billionth of the cost of ddb etc. only no-one has ever asked for her opinion.

good luck on the good ship australia and all who sail on her.

Aroncha

I'm looking forward to the movie here in the U.S. I was in a theatre yesterday and when the trailer was shown a few applause came up and you could also hear some comments from people nearby. This is a little unusual here, most folks are usually turning off their cells and complaining about their seats. Good Aussie movies and TV usually get a lot of attention here, especially when a lot of histoy (especially WW11) about Australia is included. Kidman and Jackman are very popular here, but as someone mentioned earlier, it's great to see them in something else other than a movie with a phony accent. Also interesting to see the negative comments from Aussies.

Sergio Leone

This trailer contains some of Ennio Morricone's music from the movie, "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly". I have always thought Hugh Jackman would be a good replacement for "The Man With No Name" character if there were to ever be a remake of one of Clint Eastwood's/Sergio Leone's Spaghetti Western films. When unshaven and dressed up in Western attire, Jackman does kind of look like a young Clint Eastwood and he has a similar build.

Jess

I'm Australian and I can't stand Kidman, not a particular fan of jackman and thought the plot would be pathetic until i read the synopsis at the top of this page. Just as i was getting ready to condemn the movie and everything about it I think i've completely cahnged my mind!
It looks like a slighty more feminist version of the man from snowy river meets WW2. Plus, the time period it's set in is such a massive part of our history and Australians as well as the rest of the world should be reminded (shame on any Australian who knows nothing about it). This movie looks like it's going to show how romantic (not the love type of romance-the word has 2 meanings) our history is, and i hope it shows how real people became heros for their families and neighbours and those stereotypical aussie values that were proven in the aftermath.
I think it's got promise, and i'm really excited about seeing it now.

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