Flirting (1992)

Really Surprised!

Purely Joyful Movie!

How sad is this?

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

A lake separates the male and female dormitories of Australia's rural St. Albans boarding school, but water can hardly part the flirtatious musk hovering in the air between windows. It's 1965, and love, fear, sexual desire, and whole-hearted awkwardness is radiating from the bodies of the students. Headmasters stalk the hallways, looking for a passerby to whip; pangs are repressed in favor of mild-mannered behavior. But as the students age, their romances flicker into a sudden burst of unbridled flame. Sooner or later, they have to leave their childhood fears behind — upcoming is adulthood.Flirting is a lyrical snapshot of the inelegant but lilting time in which innocence washes away and is replaced with uncomfortable, yet exciting, verisimilitude. It's a high school movie, but it can hardly be compared to the wispy transparency of its many clichéd rivals. It's not a one- note Weird Science pile or a sassy Mean Girls; it's more akin to The Breakfast Club, considering the thoughts and decisions of young adults and finding the beauty in their successes, in their flaws. Some teenagers are one-track-minded and beastly, but more are attentive. Flirting casts the immature rascals aside and puts a spotlight on the youths that contemplate the outcome of each and every decision. In that respect, the film is better because, for once, the youngsters once characterized by Anthony Michael Hall and Shirley Temple suddenly become introspective humans, not cartoons.Danny Embling (Noah Taylor) is a gangly 17-year-old with a stutter to get over. His head is too big for his body, his body is too small for his head, and the words that come out of his mouth don't sound as sophisticated as he would like. But he is a rebel, knowing that real- life mistakes aren't followed by an authoritative whipping and that math doesn't really matter in the long run. He idolizes Satre not only for his work but also for his poise, and he longs to break free from St. Albans so he can fully realize his many potentials.Thadiwe Adjewa (Thandie Newton), the exotic Ugandan-Kenyan-British daughter of a diplomat, has just arrived on the grounds, inadvertently inviting unwanted scrutiny from her female classmates. She is remarkably intelligent and effortlessly beautiful — perhaps she intimates the opposite sex, fuels the jealousy of her gawky roommates. When Danny and Thandiwe lock eyes at a rugby game one day, a spark ignites. His perceptive aura matches her cerebral wit — infatuation thrives. It doesn't take long before a mutual adoration erupts. They've never felt love like this before, and they're going to make it count for the few months they have together.The majority of teen movies believe they have to be self-deprecatingly funny or overly simple to be successful, completely unaware that purity is ultimately more winning than materialistic quotability. Teenagers are fascinating creatures, phenomenons of emotion, but films tend to liken them as a target of satire. A shame. A movie like Flirting vibrates with poignancy; in the process, I connected with its sensitive characters and, eventually, built enough of a relationship with them to a point where I felt the need to compare their hesitations and choices to my very own life. Duigan watches them move and applies their burgeoning ideals to even the hardest of moments; scenes, like the closing one (in which Danny and Thandiwe spend their last night together in a local hotel in order to properly say goodbye), defy expectations through their mannered receptiveness.A film like Flirting is easy to hold close to the heart because its conflicts have been felt by all. It's touching, it's romantic, it's witty — it ripples with pensive quiet. It doesn't just flirt with brilliance; it is brilliant, whether it knows it or not. (It also made stars out of Newton and Nicole Kidman, and kickstarted the careers of Taylor and Naomi Watts.) Read more reviews at petersonreviews.com

In some respects, John Duigan's fairytale has a lot in common with Hughes' 'The Breakfast Club', exposing the audience to the classically subversive nature of the true adolescent. Both films have the power to put viewers of all ages (once again) through the agony of young insecurity. Adults symbolize violence and corruption whilst teens form the embodiment of innocence and purity. We hence sympathize with them, not only because of their well-put comments, but also due to their ability to nostalgically move.The way in which 'Flirting' especially distinguishes itself from 'The Breakfast Club' is its far greater, dreamlike quality. Two private schools (one for boys and one for girls) sit on the opposite banks of a lake in New South Wales, Australia. At night, the misty lake is lit by a full moon, an occurrence which seems to put the film in another dimension. Especially later on, when the hero of the story is seen crossing the vast waters in a rowing boat.The year is 1965, and the strict policies of the schools prohibits nearly all contact between the sexes of the separate institutions. However, due to the extreme curiosity concerning sexuality and its subsequent hormonal antics, one early relationship manages to develop between the Australian Danny Embling (Noah Taylor) and Thandiwe Adjewa (Thandie Newton), who is born of a Ugandan father and a Kenyan-British mother. Their romantic fumbling ranges from readings of Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus to the discovery of each others cultures, and from the sharing of a first cigarette to the fulfillment of the youths' ultimate desire.When political turmoil starts tearing up her father's home country, including his political position, Thandiwe immediately feels the strong intention to be with him. She and Danny are eventually driven apart, but in the cool way, only achievable by adolescents.The cast of 'Flirting' is phenomenal. Noah Taylor ('Shine') and Thandie Newton ('Mission: Impossible II', 'Crash', this being her first acting job) already show incredible potential which, like most good, young actors, seems to entice the viewer on a far higher level than a lot of their later, 'adult' work. The supporting work by, among others, Nicole Kidman (at the age of 24) and a nearly unrecognizable Naomi Watts provide solid reasoners during the unfolding love story. The soundtrack conveys the intensely romantic feelings in a brilliant way, including works by Duke Ellington, Reg Presley and Little Richard. The fairytale feel of the movie is provided, as mentioned before, by the visual side of things. Geoff Burton's cinematography and Laurie Faen's art direction are of special note here, respectively contributing to the films - at times eerie, at times emotive - tone and its saccharin private school-backdrop.This is a brilliant little movie worth watching. Go ahead, you'll enjoy it.

This is a fantastic coming of age story. Noah Taylor as Danny Embling is brilliant. Thandie Newton and Nicole Kidman also do a wonderful job (Plus both are walking dreams) This movie definitely surpasses The Year My Voice Broke. It makes a giant leap in the quality of the picture and writing. Of course that's not to say that The Year My Voice Broke wasn't also very good, but this sequel adds much more to the tales that are coming of age stories. This movie not only follows up on how Danny Embling is doing, but it also shows a female perspective of growing up. The way Noah Taylor and Thandie Newton react to one another as their characters is exactly the way most of probably wish we could with our own first loves. They are without fear of each other.

I really liked this movie. It's a story that takes young people, first love, sex and being different seriously, without getting pretentious. Quite funny sometimes too. I was very impressed by the cast, the acting was really good at all times. Especially the two main characters, who I've never seen before, impressed. Nicole Kidman did well as usual. Since spending a great year in Australia I always try to watch any Australian movie I find, and I've been nicely surprised with how many good movies come from there. Often quite low key, but with real feeling. Sit down and watch this movie, it's definitely worth the time!