THE MONKEY'S MASK
2000

August 29, 2001
Cinemateque At The Towne

A lesbian detective (a private dick?) is hired to find a missing novice poet in Sydney.

Mostly unknown actors, with the exception of Kelly McGillis who is brave in her portrayal of an intellectual professor who plays for both teams. Susie Porter plays the detective, a street-wise muscular woman who is instantly smitten with McGillis, even though she's a suspect. They have several pretty arousing encounters; we see each of them in all their glory. The story is definitely not dull. It's hard to dislike Porter's character--she's charming and attractive and self-depreciating. The girl that she is looking for is played by Abbie Cornish who has done mostly Australian TV up to now. She has the most incredible eyes I think I've ever seen. I look forward to her next feature. The lesbian slant upgrades this from a routine detective story to something more exciting.