Nitram
Short description
Nitram is a crime drama set in suburban Australia in the mid-1990s. It centres on a young man who lives with his parents and remains isolated from those around him, unable to find a place where he fits. His frustration and anger build over time, and after a period of connection with a woman named Helen gives way to grief, he drifts toward an act of extreme violence.
The film is directed by Justin Kurzel, working from a screenplay by Shaun Grant. It is the sixth feature Kurzel directed, following Snowtown, The Turning, Macbeth, Assassin's Creed and True History of the Kelly Gang, and it was produced by Nick Batzias, Kurzel and Grant. Caleb Landry Jones plays the title role, with Judy Davis and Anthony LaPaglia as his parents, Essie Davis as Helen and Sean Keenan as Jamie. Kurzel and Grant had previously collaborated, and the pairing again shapes a story drawn from real events in Australia.
Nitram runs 112 minutes. Its critical reception was strong: critics gave it an average of 7.9 out of 10 across 118 reviews. Audiences were more reserved, with a rating of 7.1 out of 10 on IMDb from around 13,000 votes and 6.9 out of 10 on TMDB from roughly 222 votes. The gap suggests reviewers responded to the film more warmly than general viewers did. It was released in September 2021.
What's left behind the scenes
- The main character's name and the series title are “Martin” spelled backwards. Bryant Martin was the name of the gunman who killed 35 people and wounded another 23 in the deadliest mass shooting in Australian history, which took place in Port Arthur on April 28, 1996.
- According to director Justin Kurzel, actor Caleb Landry Jones, who hails from Texas, arrived in the country for filming and was placed in quarantine, during which he practiced an Australian accent by rewatching episodes of the Australian series “It's Saturday” (1971-2010), “Neighbours” (1985-2022), and “Home and Away” (1988) from the 1990s.
- No one who survived the Port Arthur massacre was consulted during the making of the film.
- The film tells the story of real events – the mass murder in Port Arthur (Australia) that took place in 1996. A total of 35 people died then.
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