Palm Beach | |
---|---|
Directed by | Rachel Ward |
Screenplay by | Joanna Murray-Smith Rachel Ward |
Produced by | Deborah Balderstone Bryan Brown |
Starring | Frances Berry Bryan Brown Matilda Brown |
Cinematography | Bonnie Elliott |
Edited by | Nick Meyers |
Production companies | |
Distributed by | Universal Pictures[1] |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 100 minutes |
Country | Australia |
Language | English |
Box office | $3.2 million[2] |
Palm Beach is a 2019 Australian comedy drama film directed by Rachel Ward, and starring Sam Neill and Bryan Brown, the latter of whom also co-produced the film.[3]
A group of lifelong friends reunite to celebrate a special birthday at Palm Beach in Sydney, who provides a stunning backdrop to the drama that unfolds. The good times are rolling, with plenty of laughter, sumptuous meals, flowing wine and fantastic music, but tensions slowly rise and deep secrets are revealed.
Palm Beach grossed $3.2 million internationally, $3 million of this in Australia.[5][2][6]
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 46%, based on 28 reviews, with an average rating of 5.1/10.[7]
Sandra Hall of The Sydney Morning Herald wrote, "Rachel Ward's Palm Beach is a seniors' edition of The Big Chill, transplanted to Sydney's northern beaches and populated with a cast of Australian favourites [...] A less likeable group of actors could easily have been upstaged by the conspicuous perfection of the setting and the décor. This bunch hold their own, but a sharper script would have made them shine even brighter."[8] Louise Keller of Urban Cinefile called the film "a good-hearted get-together of old friends and family when resentments flair, flailing relationships are revealed and secrets demand to be heard. But it aches for some grit."[citation needed]
The original soundtrack was released on 19 July 2019, by Universal Music Australia and peaked at number 37 on the ARIA Charts.[9]