PART I
FILM INFORMATION
“I can hear everything. It’s all got a song…life’s secret symphony.”
-Alysse
Title
One Perfect Day
Rating
M 15+
Duration
106 minutes
Cast
Tommy Matisse- Dan Spielman
Alysse Green- Leeanna Walsman
Hector Lee- Andrew Howard
Trig- Nathan Phillips
Emma Matisse- Abbie Cornish
Noah- Rory Williamson
Malcolm- Frank Gallacher
Caroline Matisse- Kerry Armstrong
Director
Paul Currie
Scriptwriter
Chip Richards
Cinematographer
Gary Ravenscroft
Producers
Paul Currie, Phil Gregory, Charles Morton
Co-Producer
Jason Byrne
Executive Producers
Charles Morton, Phil Gregory
Production Company
Lightstream Films
RELEASE DATES
19 February 2004- Australia
1 May 2004- U.S.A.
13 May 2004- France
11 September 2004- Netherlands
25 September 2004- Hungary
BOX OFFICE FIGURES
The box office takings for One Perfect Day was $1,150,030
(source:
INTERVIEWS
There is an interview/review of the film, with Paul Currie at . The review is quite scathing but the comments made by Currie give a good insight into what he wanted to convey in the movie. has an interview with Phil Gregory and Paul Pirola, the sound designer. Not only does the interviewer ask thought-provoking questions, but this website gives a background into how the film came to be made.
"What we wanted to make was a film that presented the real world, and a real world where people are going to be presented with choices and have the opportunity to make the decisions themselves and be equipped to make these decisions themselves," Gregory comments. "They choose to say 'yes' in certain situations and there are consequences with saying 'yes', and that's what the film deals with."
This website discusses the DVD as well as the film and links to a review page. has an interview with actor Dan Spielman and he discusses his relationship with Paul Currie and why he wanted to make the film. “Paul was my main reason for doing the film, above the script and above the material. I recognised something in him that I wanted to explore further.” has a recorded interview by film critic Margaret Pomeranz discussing the film with Paul Currie. On the film’s DVD, there is a “Making of…” documentary which features interviews with Paul Currie, Phil Gregory and Charles Morton. This provides the best information and sense of what the filmmakers wanted to achieve with One Perfect Day.
REVIEWS
Most websites containing information about this film either feature a review or link to a review. Reviewer Luke Buckmaster’s opinion on One Perfect Day is made quite clear at
Early hopes for a bright start to 2004 for the local film industry extinguish as the anticipated pill popping party movie One Perfect Day reveals itself as a politically perverse project aimed to scare kiddies away from chemicals.
More negative reviews can be found at , “unbelievably pathetic. This movie will die a quick and deserving death at the box office.” Likewise, “incredible amount of schmaltz that is contained within this film.” There are many reviews similar to these on many different websites. “The main problem is simply that One Perfect Day has a pretty crappy story, and very average script,” says reviewer Stuart, on There are also mixed reviews such as on
“One Perfect Day” isn’t the magical pill the Australian Film Industry is waiting for to pull it out of the doldrums, but it’s quite a good cut. Best of all, it grooves to a dynamic, passionate and electric beat, whilst never speaking down to the niche youth-audience it’s targeted at.
Also, refers to both the positive and negative aspects of the film in its review, “One Perfect Day could have done with a couple of dozen revisions and edits but will offer some interest to those involved in or interested in youth culture.” is the rare occurrence of a genuinely positive review of this film. “It’s a great insight…effectively portrays the intoxicating blend of party drugs and DJ’s…This is the most passionately crafted and refreshing Australian film I’ve seen in a while.”
The only non-website review I’m aware of is inside issue number 140 of Metro Magazine. Unfortunately, I have been unable to see the review so cannot comment on it.
ON-LINE PRESENCE
The official site of the film, is inactive but this may be because the web address might have changed to . This website has all the information people need to learn about the film. It has trailers, crew and cast information, downloads, soundtrack samples and list, background information and cultural links to other websites. It has lots and lots of background information about anything relatable to the film. contains a detailed interview/review with Paul Currie. It is very informative, despite being highly critical of the film. is another review of the film which is highly critical. However, it is difficult to take this review seriously when the reviewer gets the first name of the director and the entire name of the main character wrong. has brief information about the film but it features updates and links to other websites.
does not have all the information one would expect it to have but it does have quite a few links and reviews by the people from the general public. also has reviews and comments from members of the general public. is another site which reviews the film. Although, once again a negative review, the reviewer does mention the film’s redeeming qualities. is a large internet site for reviews. This is a useful website as it links to eleven reviews of the film. The reviews are detailed, yet mixed. This is a great site for getting a feel for audience response. has the first really positive film review that I’ve come across for this film.
PART II
CRITICAL REVIEW OF FILM AND ITS LITERATURE
“You know, if you throw your voice into an empty space, it echoes to the ones you love.” -Alysse
Tommy is a music student at the Royal College of Opera in London. He has a real passion for music and hears melodies in everything, from a train passing to kids playing with bottle tops. He is in the midst of trying to write an opera for his girlfriend, Alysse, back in Australia, when he hears of his sister Emma’s death at a rave party while out with Alysse. Tommy flies home and finds out from Alysse that Emma had died from a drug overdose and Alysse had taken her to the hospital but left, being scared. Tommy distances himself from Alysse and discovers his sister’s love of dance music and he goes to raves to find out where this passion came from. Tommy connects with the music and starts doing his own DJ work and interpretations of the music. Meanwhile, Alysse meets Hector Lee, a music producer/drug dealer. Hector wants to help Alysse record music with her beautiful voice. Consumed by her sorrow and guilt over losing Tommy, Alysse sleeps with Hector. This causes problems when Alysse and Tommy reunite and Hector realises Alysse has no feelings for him. Hector asks Tommy to come to a rave where he is with Alysse. Hector injects a needle filled with some drug into Alysse’s neck and she dies in Tommy’s arms. To get his revenge on Hector for killing his girlfriend, Tommy enlists the help of Trig, a friend of Alysse’s, to screen images of newspaper articles and pictures during his DJ set, to show what Hector has done. Police, pre-warned about what is going to happen, arrive at the rave and arrest Hector.
This film has some elements that work and some that don’t. The idea of incorporating classical music into modern day dance music worked really well. I think it was an interesting and successful idea, trying to relate traditional music to appeal to a modern day listener. The rave scenes are realistic as the scenes were filmed at real raves with genuine ravers. The music, lighting and atmosphere are genuine and work well.
Some of the relationships featured in the story are quite true to life. Tommy and Emma’s relationships with their mother demonstrate realistic relations between people dealing with problems. There is one scene with Emma and her mother, just before Emma’s death. Her mother is excited to see her as it is Emma’s birthday. Emma comes in to the house, happy and clearly looking forward to going out. Her mother mentions Emma’s job and questions why Emma keeps missing work, telling her boss she has a fever when she’s clearly fine. Emma’s mood quickly turns and she gets defensive and walks out. We later find out Emma has discovered she is pregnant and has not told her mother. Emma’s mood swing reflects her teenage attitude, switching so quickly. Audience members can possibly relate to her attitude, hiding her pregnancy from her mother and pushing her away because of her guilt. Tommy’s relationship with his mother isn’t as close as one would expect, after losing the two other member of their family (his father died years earlier). The two don’t bond much after the death of Emma and I think it represents the difficulty for an older son consumed by his own passions and problems to be completely supportive and caring for his mother during their time of grief.
On the issue of mourning, I don’t think that Tommy grieved over his sister as much as he should have. Just before Alysse tells Tommy she was with Emma when she died, Tommy finds a pregnancy test and mistakenly assumes it to be Alysse’s. He is furious after this and only reconciles with Alysse after he and his mother find out that Emma was pregnant when she died. This suggests that Tommy was more concerned that his girlfriend was sleeping with somebody else, rather than the fact that Alysse gave Emma drugs which contributed to her death. I didn’t feel that I could relate to a character that was more affected by something more trivial. I found it hard to engage emotionally with Tommy.
It’s also hard to understand why Tommy would be willing to embrace the rave scene after losing his sister at a rave. He realises that he didn’t know his sister, being so far away in London and wants to find out what made her so interested about the rave scene. I can see why he would want to learn about it to feel closer to his sister but I don’t think it’s realistic that he becomes passionate about it and incorporates his own style into dance music. I think it would be more likely he is bitter and resentful to those who enjoy a lifestyle which can be so harmful, being so strongly linked to drugs and contributing to his sister’s death.
There was a lot of excitement around the time of the film’s release. There are very few “good” rave films around and a lot of hype was surrounding this film as it filmed scenes at real rave events and the Australian public and film industry were optimistic about its portrayal.
One Perfect Day isn't the magical pill the Australian Film Industry is waiting for to pull it out of the doldrums, but it's quite a good cut. Best of all, it grooves to a dynamic, passionate and electric beat, whilst never speaking down to the niche youth-audience it's targeted at.
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The film doesn’t quite match up to expectations and this is evident given most reviews state that the reviewer was expecting something more from the finished product. Most reviewers tend to agree that the idea for the film is fresh and original but they all have similar criticisms of the film. These include the storyline, dialogue and unengaging characters.
One Perfect Day is the debut film for Paul Currie in the role of director. Having been a theatre director for years, Currie went on to co-found a youth charity organisation, Reach Youth. Working with young people, using creative expression gave Currie an insight into the ups and downs of young people. This gave him the inspiration for One Perfect Day.
All young people have this amazing amount of energy and zest to do, and be, something incredible. However, often there’s a lack of skills, insight, intuition, and mentors, to guide that energy. I find that the creativity that lives in so many young people is too often neglected. This film is a story that tries to navigate creativity in an intense world.
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Since One Perfect Day, Paul Currie has gone on to direct the documentary, “Lionheart- The Jesse Martin Story”. He is also the founder of the Elliot Currie Drama Studios, situated in Melbourne.
Phil Gregory has a background in advertising, design and public relations. He has worked closely with Paul Currie, being deputy director of Reach Youth. He is a founding partner of production company, Lightstream Films and is integral to different areas of the company.
Originally a lawyer, Charles Morton became an entrepreneur with a chain of pubs across Australia. Morton works closely with finding opportunities for finance and co-production with Lightstream Films internationally. He is the co-producer of One Perfect Day, alongside Phil Gregory.
Dan Spielman (Tommy Matisse) makes his debut into film with One Perfect Day. Well-known in Australia for his role as Tidy in the Australian television series The Secret Life of Us, Spielman has also been on shows such as Wildside, Queen Kat, Carmel and St Jude and Raw FM. Spielman also has a theatrical background and since One Perfect Day, he has gone on to act in the film Tom White, with Colin Friels and Rachael Blake.
Leeanna Walsman (Alysse Green) began her film career with Blackrock in 1997. She went on to star in other well-known Australian and international films such as Looking for Alibrandi, Star Wars: Episode II and television mini-series The Shark Net and the leading role in Jessica, the adaptation of Bryce Courtenay’s novel of the same name. Walsman also has extensive television acting credits in Australian shows.
Nathan Phillips (Trig) began his career in the well-known Australian soap Neighbours in 1985. After minor roles in other television series, Phillips became well-known after his critically acclaimed role as Gary Black in the 2002 film Australian Rules. From there, he went on to Take Away (2003) and One Perfect Day. Phillips can soon be seen in the upcoming Australian film, You and Your Stupid Mate (2005).
Being a recent film, One Perfect Day is reflective of modern attitudes and subjects of interest. Being a rave film and portraying drug use in a negative and unrealistic way, it represents the conservative attitudes towards raves and consequences. I think the drug use in the films is unrealistic as Tommy loses both his sister and his girlfriend to recreational drugs within a short period of time. People do die from recreational drugs and drug overdoses but it would be extremely rare for the events portrayed in the film to occur, if at all. The filmmakers choose not to glorify drugs as they are done so in real-life situations of rave parties and events. This shows that the filmmakers are trying to set an example to audiences about potential consequences. The film would not have had the support of the government had it featured drug-taking without consequences. It does, however, show a step forward in Australian filmmaking. Australian films are usually light-hearted comedies or dramatic films about family life and struggles in the modern-day. One Perfect Day is an exception to the norm as it appeals to a young adult audience and its subject matter relates to a popular party lifestyle. Films such as this are rare in Australia and possibly internationally. Unfortunately, its uniqueness does not guarantee box office success. Worldwide, One Perfect Day earned just over one million dollars. The box office takings of Australian films for 2004 show that “good” films, does not guarantee box office success. Strange Bedfellows starring Paul Hogan and Michael Caton has been widely panned as possibly the worst Australian movie of 2004, yet it earned almost $5 million at the box office. Somersault, on the other hand, won 13 AFI Awards and considered the best film of 2004, earned only $1,816,096 at the box office. As 2004 was not a very good year for Australian films and there has been quite a drought of decent films in the last few years, Australian films are not highly anticipated or valued. Bruce Redman makes the valid point on the ABC website,
The past few years the Aussie film industry has been in the doldrums as we've tried to make cheap and nasty Hollywood clones or stuck a second rate comedian and his mates in front of a camera and hoped they'd repeat the brilliance of THE CASTLE . It hasn't worked.