PROOF

“It’s a beautiful film, it’s an absolutely beautiful film. I felt like I was almost watching another person that’s how long ago it was.”

Proof star Hugo Weaving joined Margaret Pomeranz and the crew of the classic Australian pic for a special screening in the light of the film’s 25^th anniversary and recent restoration.

Also starring a young Russell Crowe, Proof, which the cast and crew heralded as life-changing for then emerging artists Lynda House and Jocelyn Moorhouse, both in attendance, who went on to make international hit Muriel’s Wedding, was congratulated for helping to usher in a “new wave” of contemporary, urban cinema following a flux of Australian period pieces.

Soon to be household names with the likes of The Matrix and Gladiator, Proof was a watershed event for aspiring Australian actors Weaving and Crowe, the latter of whom it was revealed had to hitchhike across Europe to the Cannes Film Festival in order to attend the premiere.

“The restoration has been sensational, people have put an amazing amount of time and effort into putting it together, it’s very moving,” commented cinematographer Martin McGrath, adding that “We owe this movie a lot, and we still love it.”

Revolving around a fraught, co-dependent relationship between a young blind man Martin (Weaving) and his housekeeper (an excellent Genevieve Picot), the former befriends Andy, a kitchenhand (Crowe), who agrees to help describe photographs, taken by Martin and depicting all manner of locations and subjects.

As touching as it is funny, an occasion where Andy takes Martin to a drive-in movie remains a finely-tuned, outstanding comic sequence continually one-upping the film’s macabre, lightly humorous tone. The three key performers share a captivating, evolving dynamic, strong enough to drive scene after scene and Proof’s slowly escalating confrontations.

As well as Crowe and Picot perform, Weaving is the stand-out in what is still a highlight of his career and modern Australian cinema to boot.

Proof screened as part of the Melbourne International Film Festival – for tickets head to the Festival website