Well, The Review

The Well was Australia`s sole feature in official competition at Cannes this year... Hester - Pamela Rabe - crippled and lonely, lives on an isolated farm with her cranky old father. Katherine - Miranda Otto - a sulky young woman with a somewhat mysterious past, arrives to help Hester with the chores - but, as in the famous Joseph Losey/ Harold Pinter film The Servant, this is an employee who slowly, subtly begins to dominate her employer... The Well is based on a book by Elizabeth Jolley and, as cleverly adapted by Laura Jones, astonishingly photographed by Mandy Walker and powerfully directed by Samantha Lang, is a tantalising and impressive psychological drama. Lang keeps tight control on every element of this unusual drama, gradually tightening the screws as, in the second half of the film, a body in a well provides almost supernatural suspense. There`s a flawless supporting cast and visually the film is sometimes reminiscent of vintage japanese cinema, but The Well really belongs to the very talented actresses in the lead roles - Pamela Rabe`s repressed Hester and Miranda Otto`s manipulative Katherine - two indelible performances in a bold, impressive debut.