Oyster Farmer

Oyster Farmer’s thematic and contextual settings are a highly valid aspect of its ambience.[1] Many critics have perceived that the Australian backdrop of the Hawkesbury River and the physical labours of its occupants attribute a recognisable sense of Australian life and its dominant ‘mateship culture’[2] to the film’s thematic scheme.[3] Paul Byrnes of the Sydney Morning Herald addresses the foundations of this perception in noting ‘the film has an almost ethnographic feel, combining the details of the working lives of the characters with a sly sense of comedy’.[4] Richard Kuipers takes a similar approach to the film’s interpretation, prefacing the film as a ‘small, carefully composed film that rejoices in the parochial lingo and mores of its richly textured characters’[5] Philip Cenere describes the role the setting plays; ‘it sets the mood, frames the town, and defines the characters. Few settings have so clearly shaped a film’.[6] Jami Bernard of the NY Daily News comments on the effectiveness of the chosen location, observing that ‘The realistic scenes of oyster farming and the beauty of the Hawkesbury River lend this movie a degree of fascination that its taciturn, beer-swilling characters can't provide’.[7] The cultural backdrop provided by the location, urban dialect and working lives of the characters establishes a strong sense of Australian familiarity that pervades the film’s aesthetic.

The comedic elements of the film are balanced with the isolation experienced by the protagonist. Byrnes elaborates by affirming ‘Reeves is careful in early scenes not to overplay the comedy’.[8] Jack’s understanding and relation to the community is frequently undermined, as the film ‘shifts in tone and sense of incompleteness can be seen as a function of Jack's imperfect understanding of the community’.[9] This theme is showcased by the protagonist in his efforts to conceal his motives behind starting work with the local oyster business.

Crime is interpreted by reviewers as the catalyst for the film’s events. Sharon Hurst summarises the film as capturing ‘vague feelings about the bitter-sweet quality of life – its longings, broken dreams, hopes, past baggage, forgiveness, and coming to terms and just getting on with it’.[10] The identification of the protagonist’s regret and anxiety to cover his actions is also interpreted as another aspect of his characterisation.[11]

Budding family dynamics are an additional element of the film’s subplot. Paul Byrnes of the NFSA briefly addresses these relationships in his excerpt ‘Everyone Needs a Drama’, observing that ‘Brownie’s estrangement from his wife Trish is given almost as much screen time as the burgeoning romance of Jack and Pearl’.[12] The frustration of the relationship between Brownie and his father is also aforementioned, as Byrnes stated ‘Reeves establishes a strong sense of the precarious nature of the trade, but overlays a sense of deep tribal superstition, most of which comes from (Brownie’s) old Irish father, known as Mumbles’.[13]

Catherine Simpson of Macquarie University observed that the film ‘provides its audience with a novel reconfiguring of gender relations in a small, tight-knit river community – a space rarely glimpsed on screen’.[14] Simpson elucidates that the film’s ‘black comic tone’ and female directorial lead reconfigures the hierarchical structure of small, regional, working towns.[15] Simpson categorises Trish and her solitary farming endeavours as the balance to the camera’s ‘endless objectification of the central male protagonist’.[16]  Brian McFarlane makes a similar observation, stating that Trish’s local knowledge of the environment are expressed in her ‘legendary powers over the spawning habits of oysters’[17] and subsequently become vital for the local industry, despite her colleague’s prejudices.[18]

The Hawkesbury River, where Oyster Farmer was filmed

Reeves stated that she chose the area due to her 'love of the river's epic landscape' and its ability to attribute 'a sense of its vastness and isolation’[19] to the film. Reeves further justified her choice of filming location by stating that she was 'so struck by the beauty and drama of the Hawkesbury River, a place of remote and eccentric charm so close to the city, that she spent four years immersing herself in its culture, especially the lives of the oyster farmers'[20] prior to filming. Paul Byrnes commented on Reeves’ choice, saying the chosen location ‘provides a serene and peaceful setting against which to contrast the inner turmoil and dramas of the characters who make their living from it’.[21] The economic significance of the Hawkesbury River region to the film's narrative was also a factor in Reeves' selection, being one of the primary sites of oyster production and harvesting in New South Wales, with up to 23 permit holders farming within 400 hectares of oyster leases.[22]

Filming took place in various locations within the Sydney and Hawkesbury River region, including Brooklyn and Wondabyne in the Hornsby Shire, as well as on the Hawkesbury River itself.[23]

Oyster Farmer enjoyed some free publicity, due to rumours that its star Alex O'Loughlin was a finalist for the recast role of James Bond in preparation for the development of Casino Royale.[24] O'Loughlin reportedly screen tested for the role following the withdrawal of Pierce Brosnan in 2003, but the role eventually went to Daniel Craig.[25]

Marking Reeves’ directorial debut, Oyster Farmer ran for approximately six months in Australia, grossing $2,383,051 by the second half of 2005.[26][27] The film opened the Commonwealth Film Festival in Manchester in 2007, with Reeves presenting the film at the festival’s opening on 29 April 2007.[28]

Oyster Farmer received generally mixed reviews from critics. The online reviews aggregate Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a rating of 52% based on 16 reviews, with an average rating of 5.7 out of 10.[29] Metacritic gave the film a 51 out of 100 based on 8 reviews, consisting of both ‘mixed and average reviews’.[30] IMDb gave Oyster Farmer a weighted average of 6.5 out of 10, based on 1,208 reviews.[31]

Critics of Oyster Farmer generally focused on the accuracy of the characterisations and the substantiality of the script, generally forming positive, mixed, and negative accounts.[32] Laura Kern of the New York Times claimed ‘this darkly humorous, sometimes even raunchy film mostly eludes a typical cutesy, feel-good formula’.[33] Sean Axmaker of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer made a similar assessment, stating ‘at times it gets lost in the backwaters, but the eccentric characters and offbeat humour make it an entertaining detour’.[34] The Sydney Morning Herald’s Doug Anderson chose to forefront the effectiveness of the chosen landscape, noting the landscape deserves co-star billing thanks to Alun Bollinger's cinematography.’.[35] A positive outlook was expressed by Megan Spencer of SBS, who said ‘The characters are well drawn and authentic, and Reeves clearly had a ball fashioning the language of this film and the dialogue’.[36] Sharon Hurst of Cinephilia wrote that ‘Although there is nothing remarkable to the plot, The Oyster Farmer looks feels fresh and original’.[37] Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter considered the film to be substantially lacking, commenting that it ‘fails to overcome its hokey script and cliched characterizations’.[38] V.A Musetto of the New York Post took a similar approach, stating ‘While her cast is talented, Reeves doesn’t concentrate long enough on any plotline or character to build viewer interest’.[39]

Oyster Farmer was nominated for two AACTA awards (for Best Picture and Best Cinematography), two FCCA awards (for Best Cinematography and Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Kerry Armstrong)) and two IF awards (for Best Cinematography and Best Production Design).[40]