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Lantana

Play trailer Poster for Lantana R Released Jan 25, 2002 2h 1m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
90% Tomatometer 105 Reviews 82% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
Plagued with grief over the murder of her daughter, Valerie Somers (Barbara Hershey) suspects that her husband John (Geoffrey Rush) is cheating on her. When Valerie disappears, Detective Leon Zat (Anthony LaPaglia) attempts to solve the mystery of her absence. A complex web of love, sex and deceit emerges -- drawing in four related couples whose various partners are distrustful and suspicious about each other's involvement.
Lantana

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Lantana is an intricately plotted character study that quietly shines with authenticity.

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Critics Reviews

View All (105) Critics Reviews
Marrit Ingman Austin Chronicle Rated: 3/5 Mar 10, 2003 Full Review Empire Magazine Rated: 4/5 Mar 2, 2003 Full Review Nev Pierce BBC.com Rated: 5/5 Aug 5, 2002 Full Review Leigh Paatsch Herald Sun (Australia) Achieves an intelligence, eloquence and emotion that showcases Australian film at the height of its powers. Rated: 5/5 Jul 28, 2020 Full Review Erik Anderson AwardsWatch Lantana is an embarrassment of riches. Its beautiful storytelling as its thread of conflict and insinuation are used to expose unsettling truths. A real gem of rich performances that should not be overlooked. Rated: 3/4 Apr 7, 2020 Full Review PJ Nabarro Patrick Nabarro It's not entirely far-fetched to see a link between the clunky expositions of character, plot and theme from an everyday soap, to those in Lantana. Rated: 2/5 Feb 4, 2019 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (402) audience reviews
Daniel M Years later I still remember some things about this movie, especially Geoffrey Rush, Anthony LaPaglia (WOW!) and Barbara Hershey. I think it is one of the more interesting stories about vulnerability, whether of a marriage or of men who fear vulnerability and the vulnerability of being a parent, all of it. And all of it is packaged in a really interesting mystery narrative that packs a punch in the end. SO worth it. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 10/03/24 Full Review Gareth v One of the great Australian movies. This movie is as much a study on relationships as it is murder mystery. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 06/19/23 Full Review Audience Member Marriage is complicated but also messy and dangerous with its secrets Barbara Hershey, Rachel Blake, Geoffrey Rush, Anthony Lapaglia The focus is on 4 people; a couple who's marriage is waning and another with the husband cheating Valerie, her daughter was murdered and she's grief-stricken and believes her husband John is having an affair Leon is a detective hoping to solve the case Love, sex, and deceit takes over all of them wondering who's motives are in question This acts way more like a character study than an edge-of-your-seat erotic thriller So I didn't find it quite enthralling as it moved at a snails pace There should've been bigger parts of melodrama Good performances no doubt for an Australian drama Rated 2 out of 5 stars 01/22/23 Full Review Audience Member The performances from the main 4 make this short story about infidelity so impactful. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/20/23 Full Review William L Lantana is a murder-thriller set against the far more prevalent backdrop of romantic strife, taking a mature look at deteriorating relationships, betrayal, and the slow, painful spiral as characters fall out of love. And for parts of the runtime, that's a solid premise to build the film on, except for the fact that no actual crime is committed until nearly an hour until the film's runtime, and when it is it feels exceptionally halfhearted. Instead, a massive proportion of the script revolves around melodrama, to the point that it becomes overdone and tired; every form of middle-aged crisis is on display, ranging from marriage counseling, to uncomfortable dance classes, to repeated and spontaneous bouts of screaming. In the film's attempt to dive into modern domestic discord, it lingers far too long beating you over the head with these monotonous, repetitive scenes that don't develop the theme much beyond "emotional distance is bad, and it sucks when relationships fall apart", instead of adding depth to the characters or creating more of an involved plot. Props to an Australian film (a country that leans more conservative politically) of such age for including a sincere portrayal of a homosexual character that is shown on equal footing with other characters struggling with romantic entanglements, even if his role isn't exactly integral to the plot. (2.5/5) Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 08/26/21 Full Review s r 1001 movies to see before you die. It was entertaining and a good cast. However, I thought about recommending it to some friends and then thought they wouldn't appreciate it. So, it's not for everyone. It also wasn't a movie that took things to the next level and won't be a classic. It was on Tubi. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Lantana

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis Plagued with grief over the murder of her daughter, Valerie Somers (Barbara Hershey) suspects that her husband John (Geoffrey Rush) is cheating on her. When Valerie disappears, Detective Leon Zat (Anthony LaPaglia) attempts to solve the mystery of her absence. A complex web of love, sex and deceit emerges -- drawing in four related couples whose various partners are distrustful and suspicious about each other's involvement.
Director
Ray Lawrence
Producer
Jan Chapman
Screenwriter
Andrew Bovell
Distributor
Lionsgate Films
Production Co
Australian Film Finance Corporation
Rating
R (Sexuality|Language)
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jan 25, 2002, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Oct 1, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$4.5M
Runtime
2h 1m
Sound Mix
Dolby Stereo, Dolby Digital, Dolby A, Surround, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)