[Interview] Justin Kurzel On Violence, Charismatic Serial Killers And Crafting ‘The Snowtown Murders’

Movies
Posted by EvanDickson on March 02, 2012 @ 3:59pm
Category: Movies / Exclusives

The Snowtown Murders (review), Justin Kurzel’s harrowing and brutal thriller, arrives in limited theaters Friday, March 2 from IFC Films.

This film really drew me in, and even though the experience wasn’t always pleasant (nor is it intended to be) – I knew I was in the hands of a truly gifted filmmaker. Needless to say I was eager to hop on the phone with Kurzel earlier this week to discuss his approach.

The true-crime story of The Snowtown Murders concerns “a teenager who finds his world threatened by both his loyalty for, and fear of, his newfound friend, John Bunting, Australia’s most notorious serial killer.

“The film follows Elizabeth Harvey (Louise Harris), a mother raising her three boys in a poor suburb. After her latest boyfriend displays pedophilic tendencies, she takes up with a new man, hoping for security but instead welcoming an even more vicious predator into her home. John Bunting (Daniel Henshall) is the moral compass of a self-appointed neighborhood watch who, fueled by cigarettes and beer, cast judgments on those living around them. Bunting enlists his crew in acts of sadistic vigilantism on those he considers deviants, and in the process takes Elizabeth’s son Jamie (Lucas Pittaway) under his wing.”

Hit the jump to check out the interview! READ MORE