Riding a classic storm

Shawn Sheet’s Storm Boy is the latest film adaptation of Colin Thiele’s 1964 novel of the same name, with another being released in 1976.

The latest version stars big screen newcomer Finn Little, alongside Academy Award winner Geoffrey Rush and Jai Courtney.

Retired businessman Michael Kingley (Rush) begins to see images from his long-forgotten childhood, in which he rescued and raised an orphaned pelican, Mr Percival – the best friend he ever had.

Little’s performance as ‘Storm Boy’ (young Michael) is genuinely touching, to the point of being almost flawless with several audience members moved to tears.

Special mention has to go to the team responsible for training the unsung heroes of this movie, the pelicans – Mr Percival, Mr Proud and Mr Ponder.

The way the feathered cast members interact with Little and environment around them is fantastic, with it perfectly believable he did raise them as his own.

Rush gives a predictably stellar performance full of emotion and passion while Courtney also does well in his role as Michael’s father ‘Hideaway Tom’.

The writing of all characters is polished, with nothing overdone like in some other Australian films which cross the line into being artsy-fartsy and giving the impression everybody involved was trying too hard.

The cinematography is spot-on and while the CGI elements are not on the same level as Star Wars or Infinity War, they serve their purpose.

CGI is not the point of this movie though, it is not an action-packed blockbuster from the MCU, it is a feel-good, Aussie, family film.

It is funny in places and sad in others with no real lulls or plateaus.

Sheet should take a bow for his work here. This is easily on the level of movies like Red Dog, just minus the buckets of tears.

- 8/10