2009 Samson & Delilah

Director / Writer: Warwick Thornton

Script: Warwick Thornton

Producer: Kath Shelper

Cast: Rowan McNamara, Marissa Gibson

You will se few films with the simplicity and sheer emotional power of Samson and Delilah. Director / cinematographer Warwick Thornton tells the story of two Aboriginal teenagers in a remote community. they live in a sparse environment but one tat absorbs all manner of cultural influences, where dot painting and country music exist side by side. Samson gets through his days by sniffing, while Delilah is the caregiver for her Nana before taking a moment for herself to listen to Latino music. Their journey ranges across many of the most urgent issues concerning indigenous people in Australia--homeless, poverty, domestic violence and substance abuse--but it does so with tenderness, dignity, and even humor. Thornton has the strength to speak an unadorned truth, the courage to confront pain without moralising or melodrama, and the talent to touch an audience deeply through understatement. His characters rarely speak, using a look and a gesture to convey an idea or an emotion in a deeply affecting way.