America Brown

From a psychological perspective, this film really works. The main character, Ricky Brown, seems to be suffering from PTSD. He cracked under the pressure of being a star football player in Texas high school. Something went horribly wrong and now he's on the run, from himself. What he seems to discover in New York is that he will always be wherever he goes. The people he meets along the way each have a therapeutic effect on him, and when the bad boys from Texas close in, the full force of his traumatic stress disorder comes hurtling forward into his consciousness, with great effect I might add. Ryan Kwanten is fabulous.

It's not a perfect film, and lucky for Paul Black it hasn't been lauded as one. The risk of complacency is too strong for many young filmmakers who have hit the jackpot their first time at it. But in this current climate of films without feelings, or films that must try too hard to elicit some emotion, here is a film that gives us a taste of humanity that is real and touching. Congratulations.