---
title: "Australia"
year: 2008
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/australia"
fi1m_id: "australia"
imdb_id: "tt0455824"
tmdb_id: 6972
wikidata_id: "Q275180"
fi1m_score: 58
critics_score: 58
critics_reviews: 9
published: "2026-10-03T08:24:48.977739+00:00"
updated: "2026-10-03T08:25:23.577463+00:00"
region: "PT"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Australia (2008)

Directed by Baz Luhrmann · 2h 45m · IGAC M/12 · Adventure, Romance, Drama

## Identity

Australia

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/australia
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** australia
- **IMDb ID:** tt0455824
- **TMDB ID:** 6972
- **Wikidata ID:** Q275180
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0455824/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/6972, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q275180

**Fi1m score: 58** · Critics 58 from 9 reviews

*In a sentence:* Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman could have had a lovely evening if the plot had left them alone

> Baz Luhrmann’s *Australia* has enough beauty and romantic warmth to make its muddle frustrating. The stars can hold our attention, but 165 minutes of uneven storytelling exhaust the goodwill they earn.

## Synopsis

Lady Sarah Ashley (Nicole Kidman) and The Drover (Hugh Jackman) have cattle to move through the Outback. The drive brings them together, with romance developing around the practical business of getting a herd across the landscape. Neil Fletcher (David Wenham), King Carney (Bryan Brown) and King George (David Gulpilil) also figure in the drama, alongside Katherine (Essie Davis) and a Sergeant (John Jarratt). Baz Luhrmann directs a 165-minute adventure that combines the cattle drive with the relationship between its leads.

## Review

Baz Luhrmann wants *Australia* to provide a whole evening’s entertainment: adventure, romance, handsome stars and a great deal of scenery. There is pleasure in that ambition, and enough on screen to make the disappointment matter. But the film keeps interrupting its own attractions, and its 165 minutes ask for more patience than the story earns. It is hard to settle into a romance when the storytelling keeps getting restless.

Nicole Kidman, as Lady Sarah Ashley, and Hugh Jackman, as The Drover, give us the most reliable reason to keep watching. Jackman’s sincerity is particularly useful in a film so prone to overstatement. We were touched by his romantic playing, because he lets the affection seem simple rather than making every moment another occasion for display. Kidman and Jackman are persuasive together, though the story does not always give their attraction time to develop.

Mandy Walker’s cinematography makes the Outback a substantial part of the appeal, giving the scenery a grandeur the storytelling cannot consistently match. The cattle drive supplies the excitement promised by all that scale. We can follow a clear physical task and enjoy the movement, which is a relief after the fussier passages. Some unconvincing visual effects intrude on that pleasure, occasionally making the image look less solid just when the action needs weight.

Catherine Martin’s production and costume design suit Luhrmann’s appetite for display: the clothes and surroundings are there to be enjoyed at length. That richness is a legitimate pleasure in an adventure romance, even when it encourages the film to linger. David Hirschfelder’s score is less helpful, adding emphasis to emotions that the actors could carry without so much assistance. The music leaves too little space around their performances.

The editing by Michael McCusker and Dody Dorn never quite settles the changes of pace. Individual stretches have energy, but their arrangement keeps breaking the feeling that one event follows naturally from another. The film can hurry through something that needs attention and then spend too long insisting on something we have already understood. This is where the length becomes wearing: there is ample time for the story, yet surprisingly little sense of which parts deserve it.

That weakness also belongs to the screenplay, credited to Stuart Beattie, Baz Luhrmann, Richard Flanagan and Ronald Harwood. Its determination to provide more incident makes the later stretches feel increasingly contrived, without giving the central relationship much more depth. We do not need realism from this sort of melodrama, but we do need to believe in the importance of each new complication. Too often, we are simply waiting for Kidman and Jackman to have the screen to themselves again.

We can accept coincidence, excess and people looking improbably good under pressure in an adventure romance. Luhrmann understands the appeal, and the cattle drive shows he can deliver it with conviction. But occasional excitement is not enough to make the whole journey worth recommending, especially when the romance is repeatedly crowded out. At 165 minutes, we would want to be considerably fonder of it.

*Fi1m score 58, published 3 October 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics land in the middle on Australia, and they broadly agree on what it is: a big, old-fashioned melodrama that knows exactly how much it wants to be loved. Where the praise clusters is on Brandon Walters, whom several reviews name as the emotional heart of the film and the one performance everyone warms to. The cattle drive comes next, singled out repeatedly as the stretch where spectacle and story pull in the same direction, and the Outback landscapes earn steady praise even from the doubters.

The reservations cluster around length and tone. Most find it overlong and overblown, with a final act that several describe as contrived or simply falling apart, and a few note patchy digital effects and choppy cutting. The spread is wide. The Hollywood Reporter and The Guardian are won over despite the excess, while Eye for Film dismisses the film outright as tedious and poorly acted, a view no one else shares.

## Straight answers

**Is Australia worth watching?**

*Australia* is a mixed recommendation, and we scored it 58: there is beauty, a well-shot cattle drive and real warmth between Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, but 165 minutes of restless, uneven storytelling wear that goodwill down. Watch it if you are fond of the stars and can forgive a romance that keeps being interrupted by plot.

**How long is Australia, and what is it rated?**

*Australia* runs 2h 45m and is rated M/12 by the IGAC in Portugal. It is an adventure and romance film.

**Where can I watch Australia in Portugal?**

*Australia* is streaming on Disney+ in Portugal, and it is also available to rent from Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV from €3.99. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How violent or frightening is Australia, and is it suitable for children?**

*Australia* carries a 12A certificate, so it is suitable for most children of secondary-school age with an adult, and younger viewers may be fine with it. Our review describes an adventure romance built around a cattle drive, with moments of excitement rather than anything brutal or frightening; the more likely problem for children is the length.

**What should I watch after Australia?**

After *Australia*, try [*The African Queen*](https://film.one/film/the-african-queen) (1951, Fi1m 84): An unlikely couple finds romance through practical hardship, with considerably less fuss. Then [*Walkabout*](https://film.one/film/walkabout) (1971, Fi1m 85): A harsher encounter with the Australian landscape, stripped of reassuring romantic grandeur.

### Reviews we read (9)

- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Megan Lehmann (75/100, inferred): Lehmann finds the melodramatic epic rousing and broadly captivating despite some romance and narrative missteps. She singles out Brandon Walters for giving the sprawling story its emotional heart. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/film-review-australia-125956/)
- **The Guardian**, Philip French (70/100, inferred): French finds the film absurd but entertaining, despite its overblown, Hollywood-style approach. He praises its exciting cattle-drive sequence and the evocative Outback landscapes. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2008/dec/28/australia-review)
- **Variety**, Todd McCarthy (65/100, inferred): McCarthy finds the film an entertaining, if uneven and overlong, melodrama whose eager-to-please approach should appeal to general audiences without fully sweeping them away. He singles out Brandon Walters’s natural, winning performance and the beauty of the stars and landscapes, while criticizing the choppy pacing and some weak CGI. [Read](https://variety.com/2008/film/awards/australia-28-1200472103/)
- **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (2.5/4): Ebert’s verdict was mixed, finding the film’s epic ambitions overblown. He singled out its visual spectacle, while faulting the story’s excesses. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/australia)
- **Time Out**, Nina Caplan (3/5): Caplan gives the film three out of five, a middling verdict. The accessible text offers only the premise, so it does not reveal what she specifically praises or criticizes. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/australia-1)
- **Empire**, Chris Hewitt (50/100, inferred): The critic finds the film visually impressive but wildly inconsistent, with an overlong and contrived final stretch. They praise its stunning visuals and thrilling cattle stampede. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/australia-review/)
- **Slant Magazine**, Dan Callahan (2/4): Callahan finds the epic corny and implausible, though intermittently enjoyable. He singles out the sincere Hugh Jackman as seeming lost in the collapsing third act. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/australia/)
- **Paste**, Russ Fischer (65/100, inferred): Fischer finds the film overblown and uneven, but says its romance works and its social intent is admirable. He singles out Brandon Walters’s performance as the heart of the movie. [Read](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/australia/australia)
- **Eye for Film**, Chris (10/100, inferred): The critic strongly condemns the film as tedious, predictable, and poorly acted. Brandon Walters is singled out as a bright spot amid the weak performances and contrived storytelling. [Read](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/australia-film-review-by-chris)

## Details

- **Director:** Baz Luhrmann
- **Director:** Baz Luhrmann
- **Screenplay:** Baz Luhrmann, Stuart Beattie, Ronald Harwood, Richard Flanagan
- **Story:** Baz Luhrmann
- **Cinematography:** Mandy Walker
- **Editor:** Dody Dorn, Michael McCusker
- **Music:** David Hirschfelder
- **Production design:** Catherine Martin
- **Costume design:** Catherine Martin
- **Producer:** G. Mac Brown, Catherine Knapman, Baz Luhrmann
- **Cast:** Nicole Kidman as Lady Sarah Ashley; Hugh Jackman as The Drover; Essie Davis as Katherine; David Wenham as Neil Fletcher; Bryan Brown as King Carney; David Gulpilil as King George; John Jarratt as Sergeant; Shea Adams as Carney Boy
- **Runtime:** 2h 45m
- **Certificate (IGAC):** M/12
- **Release (Portugal):** 25 December 2008
- **Genres:** Adventure, Romance, Drama
- **Budget:** $130 million
- **Box office:** $212 million

## Where to watch in Portugal

- Disney+: streaming, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: rent €3.99, hd
- Apple TV: rent €3.99, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy €9.99, hd
- Apple TV: buy €9.99, hd

*Checked 2026-10-03.*

Also available in: AE, AT, AU, BE, BG, CA, CH, CZ, DE, DK, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, IE, IL, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, NL, NO, NZ, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, TR, UA, US, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Academy Awards 2009: Best Costume Design (nominated)

## If you liked this

- *The African Queen* (1951), Fi1m 84: An unlikely couple finds romance through practical hardship, with considerably less fuss. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-african-queen.md)
- *A Town Like Alice* (1956): For sweeping romance and Australian connections, with more patience for the people.
- *The Horseman on the Roof* (1995): Another expansive period romance, with danger giving the attraction a practical urgency.
- *Walkabout* (1971), Fi1m 85: A harsher encounter with the Australian landscape, stripped of reassuring romantic grandeur. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/walkabout.md)
- *Lagaan* (2001): For unabashed spectacle, romance and communal struggle, held together by one clear contest.

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/australia