Wish You Were Here (2012) Reviews

• Pretty good drama mystery

  MattyGibbs2014-09-06

  Wish you were here is the story of four people who take a holiday in Cambodia but one of them goes missing. The film pieces together the mystery of where the missing man has gone. It's a relatively small film but is well filmed nicely combining drama with the ongoing mystery. It stars the on the up Joel Egerton who is very good in this and he receives excellent support from the rest of the cast who all put in believable performances. It held my interest throughout as it keeps you guessing as to what has happened to the missing man. The main downside is that it does maybe lose a little steam towards the end and the ending is a little flat. Wish you were here will not appeal to those who seek action or thrills and is not a brilliant film however for those that like nicely pitched drama's this is well worth watching.

• Falls Flat...

  dandelionfields2012-05-10

  Wish You Were Here is a directorial debut for actor Kieran Darcy-Smith and written by Darcy-Smith and his wife Felicity Price. The premise of the movie is promising: four Australian friends are enjoying a holiday in Cambodia, but one goes missing after a particularly "heavy" night of partying. The movie is superbly shot and mostly well acted, but I was nevertheless disappointed. We see the holiday firstly as a 10 minute sequence which moved too rapidly for me. As the movie progresses the holiday is shown in beautiful flashbacks, which give us insight into the characters as well as depicting some of the events that took place. When husband and wife, Dave and Alice (Joel Edgerton and Felicity Price) return to Sydney, they leave Alice's sister, Steph (Teresa Palmer), to try to find out what happened to her boyfriend, Jeremy (Antony Starr). Dave is uneasy and troubled, and even more so when Steph arrives home and the first of many secrets is uncovered. Joel Edgerton is marvellous as a man wracked with guilt and tormented by secrets and lies he dare not reveal. Teresa Palmer is also very good, but unfortunately her part is underwritten. I found that I became a bit bored with Felicity Price's character, Alice, especially when we start to see more and more of her and less of Dave. About half way through, the movie seemed to become stuck, and I was wanting the original storyline to develop and to give answers to the mystery. When truth is finally revealed, it is terrifying, but it feels anti-climactic, because we've had to wait too long. I found it hard to sweep my expectations aside and see the movie as the writers/director intended it to be: a story about the effect on family life when one spouse hides a dark truth from their partner. I was expecting more of a thriller, and even as I tried to accept the way the plot unfolded, I still found it disappointing. At certain times I felt sympathy for the characters and I felt their pain; but there were scenes where the magnitude of emotions that the characters were experiencing was not adequately conveyed, (for example, the ending). Obviously, Wish You Were Here was not as engrossing for me as it was for others, but I wish it had been.

• Darcy-Smith does a fine job in knitting together a quite straightforward drama into something watchable and insightful.

  dipesh-parmar2015-03-09

  'Wish You Were Here' is the debut feature from Australian director Kieran Darcy-Smith. A group of Australians visit Cambodia for a holiday, where under mysterious circumstances only three of the original four tourists come back home. Steph (Teresa Palmer) was invited by her new boyfriend Jeremy (Antony Starr) to come with him to Cambodia where he often travels to for business. Still only a few weeks into their romance, Steph wanted to be certain of her safety so she asks her sister Alice (Felicity Price) and husband Dave (Joel Edgerton) to accompany them. Rushing backwards and forwards in time, 'Wish You Were Here' slowly pieces together the mystery surrounding Jeremy's disappearance. Just as fascinating is the reasons why everyone else has not been totally honest with each other. Alice and Dave's relationship suffers, all in plain sight of their young children. Their unabashed abandon on holiday is shown in a quite different form at home, we're intrigued as to why certain actions were necessary by each when only harm was the outcome. Part thriller and part domestic drama, 'Wish You Were Here' is an ambiguous story which keeps you interested until the inevitable conclusion. Sometimes uncomfortable to watch, Price and Edgerton play their parts perfectly, a typically normal couple with huge unwanted responsibilities on their shoulders. Darcy-Smith does a fine job in knitting together a quite straightforward drama into something watchable and insightful.

• A Compelling Mystery Thriller From Australia

  perkypops2014-09-12

  The plot is simple, two couples visit Cambodia but only three people return, and the film spends its time skilfully cutting between then and now until we understand what went on during the trip, and also understand the unfolding dramatic relationship between the three who make the return trip. As a film I thought the acting, the script, the cinematography and the sound were all very commendable. Although the plot format is not original it is very well done after a seemingly confusing opening few minutes leaves you thinking you may have blinked once too often, as the opening credits run with the film. But once the film has settled down the action is driven by the acting and the script, which are always thoughtful. The film makes no attempt to sentimentalise anything but reveals the story as if we are eavesdropping on the actors. There are several poignant moments which are down to great performances by all concerned. It would be good to see some more output from this stable because there is real promise on show.

• The perfect movie about modern Cambodia

  TobyWanKenobi2013-05-16

  I was working in Phnom Penh and saw this movie at The Flicks Community Movie House. For me, it perfectly captures both the light and the darkness of modern Cambodia. Cambodia is Eden -- lush, green, magical, innocent. And the opening montage of shots in and around Phnom Penh perfectly captures the pure joy that foreigners can often feel as they experience this wondrous place. But the story of Eden also contains the fall. And what tourists (like the 3 Australians in the film) don't always get, is that Cambodia is still healing, still recovering from the wars (2nd Indochina, followed by Pol Pot, followed by 19 years of civil war). And just beneath the surface of paradise, there can be real danger especially for those who don't know what they are dealing with. I walked out of the theater (into the blasting heat of Phnom Penh) grateful that someone understood and was able to capture through film the complex energies of this moment in this place. (Even though more than half of the movie takes place in Australia, this is very much a movie about Cambodia -- as seen through the eyes of foreigners.) This was also the first time I've seen Joel Edgerton in anything -- and he's a brilliant actor I think (I'm told he's been a big deal in Australia for a while). I just saw Edgerton in Zero Dark Thirty in a small role. I also rented (bought?) Animal Kingdom on iTunes because he was in it and he's great in that too. I'm hoping Wish You Were Here gets a theatrical release in the U.S. If not, I'm hoping it will get a release soon on iTunes and Amazon.com. I've probably checked both places 10 times hoping it will be available but no release yet. I plan to recommend this movie to friends and family (in spite of the very intense subject matter) just because it captures the energy of the place that is so hard to put into words. Your mileage may vary. But this movie hit me at just the right time and 6 months later, I'm scouring the internet trying to find a way to see it again.