35mm Man of Flowers (1983)

From Australian auteur Paul Cox.

A critical and commercial success for Australian film in the 1980s, Man of Flowers borrows liberally from the tradition of European auteur cinema, yet retains a distinctively Australian perspective and sense of humour. This blending of European and local sensibilities is the signature of Dutch-Australian director Paul Cox, one of Australia's most prolific film auteurs.

Charles Bremer (Norman Kaye), a retired, wealthy aesthete, regularly hires Lisa (Alyson Best), a young female artist’s model, to strip for him to the soundtrack of a Donizetti aria. Charles writes letters to his dead mother, plays church organ, loves flowers, and attends drawing classes. Lisa meanwhile is having problems with her chauvinist, drug-abusing boyfriend David (Chris Haywood), a modernistic painter who keeps hitting her for money. As Charles and Lisa form a strong attachment that has nothing to do with sex, it becomes clear that the aggressive David presents a problem that needs to be solved.

Rating

M

Cast

Norman Kaye, Alyson Best, Chris Haywood, Werner Herzog,

Director

Paul Cox