Babyteeth (film)

Last updated

Babyteeth
Babyteeth (film).jpg
Official release poster
Directed by Shannon Murphy
Screenplay byRita Kalnejais
Based onBabyteeth
by Rita Kalnejais
Produced byAlex White
Starring
CinematographyAndrew Commis
Edited byStephen Evans
Music by Amanda Brown
Production
companies
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release dates
  • 4 September 2019 (2019-09-04)(Venice)
  • 23 July 2020 (2020-07-23)(Australia)
Running time
118 minutes
CountryAustralia
LanguageEnglish
Box office$1 million [1] [2]

Babyteeth is a 2019 Australian coming-of-age comedy-drama [3] film directed by Shannon Murphy from a screenplay by Rita Kalnejais, based upon her stage play of the same name. It stars Eliza Scanlen (in her first film appearance), Toby Wallace, Emily Barclay, Eugene Gilfedder, Essie Davis, and Ben Mendelsohn. The film had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on 4 September 2019. It was released in Australia on 23 July 2020 by Universal Pictures and won nine AACTA awards, including Best Film.

Contents

Scanlen plays Milla, a 16-year-old girl from a wealthy family who falls in love with a drug-addict named Moses shortly before she has a cancer recurrence.

Plot

Milla Finlay is a 16-year-old school girl, recently diagnosed with cancer. On her way home from school one day she meets 23-year-old Moses on a railway platform, and he almost immediately asks her for money. Milla quickly develops a crush on Moses and introduces him to her parents: Anna, a musician, and Henry, a psychiatrist. Both are uncomfortable with Moses due to the age difference between him and Milla, but are permissive due to Milla's illness.

A while later, Anna wakes up at night and discovers Moses in the process of robbing the family for prescription drugs. Milla and Henry wake up and are alerted to the situation, but while Henry wants to call the police Milla pleads for leniency, which Anna allows, noticing how much happier Milla is with Moses. The following day Anna warns Moses to stay away from her daughter.

Moses continues to visit Milla at school. After she tracks him down one night Moses takes her on his drug runs and then to a party. They later spend the night together on a rooftop, where Moses abandons Milla. Her distraught parents eventually track the weakened Milla down and take her to the hospital.

Aware that they are unable to stop the relationship between Milla and Moses, Henry and Anna become more permissive of their relationship allowing Moses to frequently visit her. When Milla gets ill at home, Anna realises that Moses had stolen her medication. Milla becomes angry, believing that Moses is using her for her father's access to drugs, and kicks him out of her home.

Later Henry tracks Moses down and asks him to come live with the family, promising him access to drugs as long as he continues to make Milla happy. For a while, the family and Moses live in a kind of harmony, until Milla discovers her father is drugging Moses. She gets angry and asks Moses to leave. He eventually comes back and goes through withdrawal in an attempt to stay sober, prioritising his relationship with Milla over his drug addiction.

After Milla's 17th birthday party, a happy occasion, she reveals to Moses that she is in constant pain and knows the end is near. She begs Moses to kill her by suffocation, but he cannot go through with it. Instead, the two have sex for the first time.

The following day Anna and Henry realise that Milla had sex the previous night and are happy for their daughter. When Anna goes to give Milla water in bed after Moses leaves the bedroom, she discovers that she had died during the night.

In a flashback, Henry remembers a day with Milla at the beach. She tells him she is at peace with dying and asks him to take care of Moses when she is gone. Henry, in turn, promises that he and Anna will be okay when she dies.

Cast

Release

Babyteeth had its world premiere at the Venice International Film Festival on 4 September 2019, where it competed for the Golden Lion. [4] [5] It also screened at the BFI London Film Festival on 6 October 2019, where it competed in the First Feature Competition. [6] Shortly after, IFC Films and Picturehouse Entertainment acquired US and UK distribution rights to the film, respectively. [7] [8]

The film was released in the United States on 19 June 2020, [9] and in Australia on 23 July 2020 by Universal Pictures. [10] [11] [12]

Reception

Babyteeth received positive reviews from film critics, when it screened at the Venice Film Festival. [13] On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a score of 94% based on reviews from 154 critics with an average score of 7.70/10, The site's critics consensus reads: "Powerfully acted and sensitively directed, Babyteeth offers audiences a coming-of-age story that's messier – and more rewarding – than most." [14] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 77 out of 100, based on 30 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". [15]

David Ehrlich of IndieWire gave the film "B+", calling it "a movie that's off-kilter but always raw; delicate, but never precious". [16] Variety 's Guy Lodge describes it as an "arresting feature debut for both director Shannon Murphy and screenwriter Rita Kalnejais". [3] Michael O'Sullivan of the Houston Chronicle praised Babyteeth, stating that it "works precisely because it refuses to accommodate expectation." [17]

Kevin Maher of The Times gave the film five stars and described it as an "emotionally shattering feature debut from Shannon Murphy". [18]

Accolades

AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipient(s)ResultRef.
Venice Film Festival 7 September 2019 Golden Lion BabyteethNominated [19] [20]
SIGNIS AwardWon
Premio Soundtrack Stars Award: Special Jury PrizeWon
Adele and Christopher Smithers AwardWon
Marcello Mastroianni Award Toby Wallace Won
Brussels International Film Festival (BRIFF) September 2020Grand Prix, International CompetitionBabyteeth (Milla)Won [21]
AACTA Awards 30 November 2020 Best Film Alex WhiteWon [22]
Best Direction Shannon Murphy Won
Best Screenplay, Original or Adapted Rita KalnejaisWon
Best Actor in a Leading Role Toby WallaceWon
Best Actress in a Leading Role Eliza Scanlen Won
Best Actor in a Supporting Role Ben Mendelsohn Won
Best Actress in a Supporting Role Essie Davis Won
Best Cinematography Andrew CommisNominated
Best Editing Steve EvansNominated
Best Original Music Score Amanda Brown Won
Best Sound Sam Hayward, Angus Robertson, Rick Lisle, Nick EmondNominated
Best Production Design Sherree PhilipsNominated
Best CastingKirsty McGregor, Stevie RayWon
6 March 2021 Best International Actress Eliza ScanlenNominated [23]
Best International Supporting Actor Ben MendelsohnNominated
Guldbagge Awards 25 January 2021 Best Foreign Film Shannon MurphyNominated [24] [25]
British Independent Film Awards 22 February 2021 Best International Independent Film Shannon Murphy, Alex White and Rita KalnejaisNominated [26]
BAFTA Awards 11 April 2021 Best Direction Shannon MurphyNominated [27]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cate Blanchett</span> Australian actor and producer (born 1969)

Catherine Elise Blanchett is an Australian actor and producer. Regarded as one of the best performers of her generation, she is recognised for her versatility across independent films, blockbusters, and theatre. She has received numerous accolades, including two Academy Awards, four British Academy Film Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards, in addition to nominations for a Tony Award and two Primetime Emmy Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Judy Davis</span> Australian film, television and stage actress

Judith Davis is an Australian actress in film, television, and on stage. With a career spanning over 40 years, she has been commended for her versatility and regarded as one of the finest actresses of her generation. Frequent collaborator director Woody Allen described her as "one of the most exciting actresses in the world". She is the most awarded recipient for the AACTA Award with nine accolades and has received numerous accolades, including three Emmy Awards, two BAFTA Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards, and two nominations for Academy Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toni Collette</span> Australian actress and producer

Toni Collette is an Australian actress and producer. Known for her work in television and independent films, she has received various accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and five AACTA Awards, with nominations for an Academy Award and a Tony Award.

Esther Davis is an Australian actress and singer, best known for her roles as Phryne Fisher in Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries and its film adaptation, Miss Fisher & the Crypt of Tears, and as Amelia Vanek in The Babadook. Other major works include a recurring role as Lady Crane in season six of the television series Game of Thrones, Sister Iphigenia in Lambs of God, and the role of Ellen Kelly in Justin Kurzel's True History of the Kelly Gang.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claudia Karvan</span> Australian actress (born 1972)

Claudia Karvan is an Australian actress and producer. As a child actor, she first appeared in the film Molly (1983) and followed with an adolescent role in High Tide (1987). She portrayed a teacher in The Heartbreak Kid (1993) – the film was spun off into a TV series, Heartbreak High (1994–1999), with her character taken over by Sarah Lambert. Karvan's roles in television series include The Secret Life of Us (2001–2005), Love My Way (2004–2007), Newton's Law (2017) and Halifax: Retribution (2020). She won Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Television Drama at the AFI Awards for her appearance in G.P. (1996). She won two similar AFI Awards for her role in Love My Way and in 2014 for her work in The Time of Our Lives (2013–2014). As a co-producer and co-writer on Love My Way, she won three further AFI Awards for Best Drama Series in 2005, 2006 and 2007. Karvan was inducted into the Australian Film Walk of Fame in 2007 in acknowledgment of her contributions to the Australian film and television industry. From 2010 to 2011, she starred in the drama series Spirited, which she co-created and was executive producer. She appeared as Judy Vickers in Puberty Blues. Karvan has co-produced House of Hancock and Doctor Doctor (2016–2021). In 2021 she co-created, co-produced and starred in the TV drama series, Bump.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vanessa Kirby</span> British actress (born 1988)

Vanessa Nuala Kirby is a British actress. She made her professional acting debut on stage, with acclaimed performances in the plays All My Sons (2010), A Midsummer Night's Dream (2010), Women Beware Women (2011), Three Sisters (2012), and as Stella Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire (2014).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elizabeth Debicki</span> Australian actress (born 1990)

Elizabeth Debicki is an Australian actress. After studying drama at the Victorian College of the Arts, she made her film debut in the Australian comedy A Few Best Men (2011). Her role in Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby (2013) won her the AACTA Award for Best Supporting Actress. She played Ayesha in the Marvel films Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023). She gained critical attention for her performance in Steve McQueen's heist thriller Widows (2018). The following year, she received the Cannes Film Festival's Trophée Chopard. She then co-starred in Christopher Nolan's science fiction thriller Tenet (2020).

<i>Babyteeth</i> (play)

Babyteeth is a 2012 play by the Australian playwright Rita Kalnejais. Richard Roxburgh announced that he was planning to direct a film version in 2015.

<i>Ukraine Is Not a Brothel</i> 2013 film

Ukraine Is Not a Brothel is a 2013 Australian documentary film directed by Kitty Green. The film debuted at the 70th Venice International Film Festival, although it was not part of the competition. The documentary concerns the FEMEN (Фемен) movement, a feminist protest group originating from Ukraine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eliza Hittman</span> American film director

Eliza Hittman is an American screenwriter, film director, and producer from New York City. She has won multiple awards for her film Never Rarely Sometimes Always, which include the New York Film Critics Circle Award and the National Society of Film Critics Award—both for best screenplay.

<i>The Daughter</i> (2015 film) 2015 film

The Daughter is a 2015 Australian drama film written and directed by Simon Stone, starring an ensemble cast led by Geoffrey Rush. The film was released in Australia on 17 March 2016 to generally favourable reviews. The film is a reworking of Henrik Ibsen's 1884 play, The Wild Duck.

<i>The Nightingale</i> (2018 film) 2018 Australian drama film directed by Jennifer Kent

The Nightingale is a 2018 Australian historical psychological thriller film written and directed by Jennifer Kent. The film stars Aisling Franciosi, Sam Claflin, Baykali Ganambarr, Damon Herriman, Harry Greenwood, Ewen Leslie, Charlie Shotwell, and Michael Sheasby. Set in 1825 in Van Diemen's Land, it follows a young Irish convict woman (Franciosi) seeking vengeance against the sadistic English Colonial Force Lieutenant (Claflin) and soldiers who first raped her and then murdered both her husband and infant daughter. She is aided by an Aboriginal Tasmanian tracker (Ganambarr), who similarly seeks vengeance for the murderous Black War against his own people. In addition to being filmed in both English and in the Irish language, The Nightingale is the first motion picture to be filmed in palawa kani, a reconstructed form of the once extinct Tasmanian languages.

Fiona Choi is an Australian-born Chinese actress, singer and performer, best known for her lead role as Jenny Law in Benjamin Law's award-winning SBS Comedy The Family Law for which she received an AACTA Award nomination for Best Performance in a Television Comedy and 3 consecutive Equity Ensemble Awards for Outstanding Performance in a Comedy Series. Fiona is also known for her work on stage in Melbourne Theatre Company's Golden Shield and Torch The Place as well as her one-woman show Dragon Lady: The Many Lives & Deaths of Anna May Wong which premiered to much acclaim at the 2019 Adelaide Cabaret Festival

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cailee Spaeny</span> American actress

Cailee Spaeny is an American actress. She is best known for her portrayal of Priscilla Presley in the biopic Priscilla (2023), which earned her the Volpi Cup for Best Actress in addition to a nomination for a Golden Globe Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eliza Scanlen</span> Australian actress (born 1999)

Eliza Jane Scanlen is an Australian actress. She rose to prominence portraying Tabitha Ford in the Australian soap opera Home and Away (2016), before receiving critical acclaim by playing a troubled teenager in the HBO miniseries Sharp Objects (2018). In 2022, she starred in the Showtime series The First Lady as young Eleanor Roosevelt.

<i>The Day Shall Come</i> Film directed by Chris Morris

The Day Shall Come is a 2019 comedy film directed by Chris Morris and written by Morris and Jesse Armstrong. It stars Marchánt Davis, Anna Kendrick, Danielle Brooks and Denis O'Hare. The film satirises a number of real-life FBI sting operations including the Liberty City Seven.

<i>Corpus Christi</i> (2019 film) 2019 film by Jan Komasa

Corpus Christi is a 2019 drama film directed by Jan Komasa and written by Mateusz Pacewicz. An international co-production between Poland and France, the film stars Bartosz Bielenia, Aleksandra Konieczna, Eliza Rycembel, Tomasz Ziętek, Leszek Lichota, and Łukasz Simlat. Inspired by real-life events, it follows a 20-year-old man who experiences a spiritual transformation while living in a youth detention center.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shannon Murphy</span> Australian film and television director

Shannon Murphy is an Australian film and television director. She made her feature film debut with Babyteeth (2019), for which she was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Direction in 2021.

Toby Wallace is a British-born Australian actor, known for his role in Babyteeth (2019), for which he won the Marcello Mastroianni Award at the 2019 Venice Film Festival and the AACTA for Best Actor in a Leading Role in 2020.

References

  1. ↑ "Babyteeth (2020)". The Numbers . Retrieved 12 January 2021.
  2. ↑ "Babyteeth". Box Office Mojo . Retrieved 12 January 2021.
  3. 1 2 Lodge, Guy (4 September 2019). "Film Review: 'Babyteeth'". Variety . Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  4. ↑ "Venezia 76 Competition". labiennale.org. 25 July 2019. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  5. ↑ Vivarelli, Nick (25 July 2019). "Joker, Ad Astra, The Laundromat, Marriage Story to Compete in Venice". Variety. Retrieved 25 July 2019.
  6. ↑ "Babyteeth". bfi.org.uk. 29 August 2019. Archived from the original on 5 September 2019. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
  7. ↑ McNary, Dave (15 October 2019). "Eliza Scanlen Drama 'Babyteeth' Lands at IFC for North America". Variety. Retrieved 15 October 2019.
  8. ↑ Dalton, Ben (4 October 2019). "Picturehouse Entertainment acquires Venice Competition title 'Babyteeth' for UK". Screen Daily. Retrieved 5 October 2019.
  9. ↑ "Babyteeth". IFC Films . Retrieved 13 June 2020.
  10. ↑ Groves, Don (1 June 2020). "Universal sets release dates for 'Babyteeth' and 'Slim & I'". IF.com.au. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
  11. ↑ Straker, Damien (29 August 2019). "BABYTEETH – Trailer, Synopsis, and Poster". ImpulseGamer.com. Retrieved 15 October 2019.
  12. ↑ York, Keva (21 July 2020). "Australian film Babyteeth stars Eliza Scanlen in bittersweet tale of first love soured by sickness". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
  13. ↑ Groves, Don (5 September 2019). "Shannon Murphy's 'Babyteeth' wows the critics in Venice". InsideFilm. Retrieved 5 September 2019.
  14. ↑ "Babyteeth (2020)". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango Media . Retrieved 8 July 2023.
  15. ↑ "Babyteeth Reviews". Metacritic . Fandom, Inc. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
  16. ↑ Ehrlich, David (4 September 2019). "'Babyteeth' Review: Eliza Scanlen Leads Vibrant and Touching Australian Cancer Drama". IndieWire . Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  17. ↑ O'Sullivan, Michael (19 June 2020). "Moving yet unsentimental Aussie film 'Babyteeth' is worth your time". Houston Chronicle . Retrieved 19 June 2020.
  18. ↑ Maher, Kevin. "Babyteeth review — an emotionally shattering feature debut from Shannon Murphy". The Times . ISSN   0140-0460 . Retrieved 14 August 2020.
  19. ↑ "Official Awards of the 76th Venice Film Festival". La Biennale di Venezia. 7 September 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
  20. ↑ "Collateral Awards of the 76th Venice Film Festival". La Biennale di Venezia. 7 September 2019. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  21. ↑ "Jury & Awards". BRIFF. 27 August 2020. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  22. ↑ Jefferson, Dee (30 November 2020). "'That we made it at all seems like a miracle': Cate Blanchett's refugee drama sweeps AACTA awards". Australia: ABC. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  23. ↑ "AACTA International Awards".
  24. ↑ "2020 års Guldbaggenomineringar!". Guldbaggen.se. 17 December 2020. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
  25. ↑ Adelai, Amina; Farran-Lee, Lydia (25 January 2021). "Charter och Spring Uje spring tog hem de tunga priserna". SVT (in Swedish). Retrieved 25 January 2021.
  26. ↑ "'Saint Maud,' 'His House,' 'Rocks' Lead British Independent Film Awards Nominations". Variety. 9 December 2020. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
  27. ↑ "2021 EE British Academy Film Awards: The Winners". 9 March 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.