From the city to the bush, we meet five very different men; they are Aussie men, but not Ockers. Each is of one of filmmaker Genevieve Bailey's friends and her disciplined, creative process has resulted in an intimate and heartwarming look into vulnerability and friendship. There's a war-zone photo-journalist, a farmer and outreach worker from rural Victoria, a musical nomad and an artist. Each man talks openly about complex emotions. They are interesting men; funny, wise, anxious, sad and joyful at times. They are articulate and we see mental health struggles as part of a normal life.
We intuitively know the great truth and honesty in these portraits. These are men at very grave risk in our community, doing the thing that they are not supposed to be able to do; talking about stuff.
But Happy Sad Man is also a great piece of cinema, with brilliant images, locations and sound, all artfully organized to achieve maximum effect.
Genevieve Bailey includes herself, in a restrained way. She is director and cinematographer, applying her considerable skills to her real-life friendships to delve into Australian masculinity. It is a breathtakingly revealing anecdotal survey because of its intimacy with the subjects. Bailey has accumulated material from set pieces to hand-held go-pro over years; images and words to make a landmark film.
We get a great insight into masculinity and mental health in Australia today and the film is bound to change the dialogue around these life and death issues. The content is timely if not way overdue. And there are lovely contributions of music from Nick Huggins & Lisa Mitchell.
An extraordinarily charming and uplifting film. Everybody will love it.
