Synopsis

At midnight, on a hot summers night, two ex cons, an imposing thug and his mate Trev, catch the last train to Fremantle. Bored, restless, and looking for trouble, they start to poke fun at their mind numbing existence. Until a beautiful young law student named Lisa, steps into the carriage. She's alone, and seemingly unaware that the guards are on strike. Intrigued by her bravado, the men use their off beat charm to compete for her attention. But there's more to this young woman than meets the eye. When two other passengers Simon and Maureen join the train further down the line the tension and harrassment takes on new meaning, Now the tall, tattooed thug has another victim in his sight. The shy Simon. Then, suddenly, the balance of power takes an unexpected twist.

What The Critics Say

"It's high-powered drama as the situation becomes unsettling and dangerous with sudden violence and cold fear. Sims builds the conflict with many of the issues which divide today's society and drive the resentment in a world where, as Trev (Budge) complains: Everything tells you everyone's having a great life." Stan James ADELAIDE NOW "All aboard for the best Australian film of the year – book yourself a seat on the "Last Train to Freo"." Clint Morris MOVIEHOLE "The pacing is a tour de force. Throughout the uncovering of layers of true identity and hidden agendas, shocks of revelation and the psychological dance, mainly between Lisa and the two thugs, then more poignantly with Maureen and more violently with the suit, never once does dramatic tension lag. Close ups, particularly of Steve’s deep-lidded dead-eyed stare, are almost hypnotic, particularly for Lisa." Avril Carruthers INFILM "We are honoured (and lucky) to host the world première of the tautest, most cunningly scripted psychological thriller to come out of Australia since "The Interview". Adapted from a successful play and directed by experienced actor and theatre director Jeremy Sims, "Last Train to Freo" has more surprises up its sleeve than a cardsharps’ convention." TELECOM NZ INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2006

"... a taut, confronting and desperately exciting mystery. 4 STARS." Stan James ADELAIDE NOW "Last Train to Freo might be travelling along a different track to the usual mainstream feature, but its end of the line is a place that’s a lot more rewarding, heartening and satisfying than the pricier, larger-scale pics that take that usual, more heavily-rode, route. In short, director Jeremy Sims’ (yep, that Jeremy Sims) film is a loco that’s not so much interested in making cabbage and showing off its toys (which most films, even Australian films, are primarily concerned with – lets be honest), as it is the characters and captivation – and depending on how much substance you like with your long, tall glass of cinema, it might just be your poison. As a screenwriter myself, it satisfied near as much as a triple sambuca. It’s a classic example of how simply filming what’s on the page – results in premium grade goods. 4 STARS." Clint Morris MOVIEHOLE "A brilliant, character-driven, psychological drama to keep you on the edge of suspense and with elements you think you can guess, but will not - until the last moments - even come close, Last Train to Freo is based on a successful stage play by screenwriter Reg Cribb. I’m sure it suits the stage as aptly as it does film. 4 1/2 STARS." Avril Carruthers INFILM "I really dug "Last Train To Freo" and I think it deserves a bit of buzz and hopefully it gets out there so people can see it. I don't want to get any expectations too high, but it is a really inventive little thriller that takes a cool concept and does a kickass job with it. One of the best films I've seen at the film festival and I highly recommend it." AINTITCOOL.COM

The Inside Story Last Train to Freo began life as a short play called "The Return", which Reg Cribb wrote and Jeremy Sims directed for the Griffin Theatre Company in 1999. After a highly successful season, the work was re-staged for the Perth Theatre Company a year later, extending and editing new material to make it stand alone as a full length play. With a second cast, a new set and reworked material the play again proved its power to fascinate, frighten and thrill an audience. But it wasn’t enough. Both Reg and Jeremy felt the story could go further, taking the audience deeper into the psychological landscape of the character’s personalities. By re-imagining the story through the medium of film they believed it could work on new levels and, with the encouragement and support of producers Greg Duffy and Lisa Duff, set out to create their first screenplay. Some early script development support by the Australian Film Commission gave them a kick start but it would take another four years before the film was eventually realised. Teaming up with experienced Perth based producer Sue Taylor, they continued to work on the script and in October 2004 submitted the project to the first West Coast Visions Initiative, a competitive scheme developed by ScreenWest to promote WA stories on film. With a financial commitment of $750,000 from the WA Government, they used the money to attract additional private investment and by April 2005 were ready to start production. Using a mix of studio and location, the film was shot on High Definition by cinematographer Toby Oliver over four weeks in Perth. Production designer Clayton Jauncey constructed a full scale suburban train carriage in Sunset Studios, using rear projection to simulate the background imagery from Midland to Fremantle. Despite its contentious subject matter, the Public Transport Authority allowed the filmmakers’ access to the real Midland to Fremantle train, filming over five nights from midnight to dawn. What They Had To Say "Every time I directed the play I yearned to be able to bring my audience closer to some of the more crucial turning points, to let them see every twitch on Lisa’s face when Steve tells her why he was put in prison," notes debut director Jeremy Sims. "From that point of view it was immensely satisfying to be able to put the camera right in the actors face."
"About six years ago I was in a transition stage of my life. I’d recently returned to Perth after living and working in Sydney as an actor for twelve years. This move was prompted by the death of my brother in an accident and I all I really wanted to do was be with my family, grieve quietly and start again," writer Reg Cribb recalls. "I was even contemplating giving up the arts but after being back here for about 6 months I started to see my hometown in a stark new light."
"I did not feel confident enough in my skills as a ‘film director’ to take on that challenge in a sprawling work," says Sims. "I like to work within my limitations and make sure that am completely in control of what I am presenting to people. I’m a control freak, so I loved the limitations."
"It’s nearly impossible to play someone that you don’t like. No matter how irredeemable the character may seem, if you can’t discover the bits of him that are likeable then its hard to make them anything more than two dimensional," Le Marquand said. "And given some of the freaks and fuck-ups I’ve had to play in recent years, its one of the first things I do in building the character."
"One day I was just sitting on the train, travelling from Maylands to Fremantle, when I was witness to an incident involving two ex cons and a young female law student. The two men were intent on impressing the girl with their prison exploits and made sure the entire train carriage was privy to it as well. The train carriage was their turf, their playground and the place that they philosophised. What struck me about the incident was how articulate, charismatic and amusing they were," says Cribb. "The taller of the thugs was an amazing character."
"It was actually my idea to be credited as 'The Tall Thug' instead of Steve (which I believe he is called in the play version. I don’t know if it’s just co-incidence or if he was named after me?)," says Steve Le Marquand.
"I can’t wait to sit in an audience in Perth and watch them watch themselves on a movie screen for the first time," Sims revealled. "I hope it goes off in Perth." The Verdict "A stella cast makes "Last Train To Freo" totally believable. There's not one performance you could fault but needless to say it is Steve Le Marquand who is a dead set standout. It's so frighteningly convincincing you'll break out in a cold sweat. The longer the journey goes the more menacing 'The Tall Thug' becomes and the more we fear for the three apparently hapless passengers trapped on the train with him. In this claustrophobic setting, the air is so thick with tension, you'll feel as though you could cut it with a knife. The best aussie drama since "Lantana" is ... "Last Train To Freo", a confronting adaptation of Reg Cribb's play "The Return". A superb directorial debut for Jeremy Sims. This is one train ride you must take. Top shelf 4 1/2 STARS." A Stella Cast STEVE LE MARQUAND
Steve has worked on everything from Hollywood thrillers to co-op theatre, but every director who has worked with him will have a story to tell. His role as ‘the Tall Thug’ in Last Train to Freo is his first leading role in a feature film. Since graduating from Theatre Nepean, Steve has appeared as a fierce thug in Nash Edgerton’s Bloodlock, a WWII digger in Kokoda, a clumsy, shotty-loving bank robber in Gregor Jordan’s Two Hands, a larrikin Aussie climber in the Hollywood blockbuster Vertical Limit and a nut-bag beachcomber in Lost Things. He has been seen on stage in The Spook, Buried Child and Waiting For Godot for Company B Belvoir; Holy Day for the STC and Songket and Borderlines – The Return for Griffin. Steve also co-wrote, produced, directed and starred in the hugely successful theatre production He Died With A Felafel In His Hand, which ran for several years in most capital cities around Australia. His TV credits include All Saints, Farscape, Crash Palace, Young Lions, South Pacific, Blue Heelers, Wildside, G.P, Murder Call, Big Sky, Water Rats, Home and Away and Police Rescue. Steve takes his cricket and rugby league very seriously. Greg and Jeremy watch the boxing at his house.
GIGI EDGLEY
Gigi is best known in Australia for her work on the seminal television series, The Secret Life Of Us. She has appeared in many local television shows including Black Jack and Stingers, but has acquired an international fan base thanks to her starring role on the Jim Henson sci-fi epic Farscape. The character was initially written as a one-episode appearance, however, the producers were so taken by the performance of this girl from Australia, writers were told to change the script. ‘Chiana’ lived on to become a lead on the show over the next five years. After shooting her fifth season in the Channel 10 Tele-movie Black Jack, Gigi is following the footsteps of other successful Australian actresses over to the states where she has just completed filming one of the leads in her first US feature ‘Alien V’s Alien’. Gigi has worked extensively in the theatre. Most recently she starred in the first production outside of London of the play, ‘4:48 Psychosis’ directed by Samantha Lang, who also worked with Gigi on the feature film The Monkey’s Mask. Before graduation from QUT, Gigi was offered the role of Erica Watson on Day of the Roses, a tele-movie based on the true story of the horrific Granville train disaster. A heroic looking Jeremy Sims facilitated Gigi’s rescue. They have agreed to stop meeting on trains.
TOM BUDGE
At 24 years of age Tom Budge is considered by many to be the next Aussie actor to make a big impact overseas. He burst onto the big screen as the unforgettable Pickles in Paul Goldman's highly praised Australian Rules. Since then he has appeared as Samuel Stote, the sociopathic bushranger in Nick Cave and John Hillcoat’s magnificent, award winning film The Proposition. Most recently he has starred as the lovable innocent Johnno, in the WWII thriller Kokoda and as Schumann in Neil Armfield’s Candy. Not only has Tom impressed film critics but his debut stage performance, in the Company B Belvoir St. production of The Lieutenant of Inishmore, earned him a Best Supporting Actor nomination at the 2004 Helpmann Awards. It also caught the eye of the producers of Last Train to Freo. When Tom isn't acting he is busy indulging in his other passion, composing and performing original music around his home-town of Melbourne, Australia. He has created and fronted many bands such as The Wild Flowers Of Australia, The Shot-Up Apples and more recently a new Country/Blues band, Space Coyote. Jeremy and Tom played a twenty-five minute acoustic version of Ed Keupper’s serene machine at the last train rap party.
GILLIAN JONES
A NIDA graduate, Gillian is one of Australia’s most respected actors. She has appeared in some of Australia’s most successful television dramas including Wildside, GP, Cody, The Flying Doctors, Come in Spinner, Rafferty’s Rules, Cop Shop and Homicide. Since her first film, Heatwave, directed by Phillip Noyce and also starring Judy Davis, Gillian has appeared in such films as Terra Nova, Gillian Armstrong’s Oscar and Lucinda, the experimental What I Have Written and Shame. She also starred in last year’s short feature So Close to Home, which has become a festival hit and has recently been nominated for an AFI Award. Gillian performed in the original Australian production of Hair and has since amassed an impressive list of theatre credits for all of the country’s major theatre companies. Her most recent stage work includes Company B Belvoir’s international tour of Cloudstreet, Melbourne Theatre Company’s productions of The Glass Menagerie and Cloud Nine (receiving a Green Room Award nomination for the latter) and Far Away for the Sydney Theatre Company. Gillian works regularly as a principle performer for Australia’s best-known theatre director Neil Armfield. She met Jeremy in the rehearsal room of the original production of Aftershocks.
GLENN HAZELDINE
Glenn graduated from NIDA in 1994 and has accumulated an impressive list of theatre credits encompassing all of the main stages in Sydney. Highlights include Howard Barker's Victory directed by Judy Davis, Julius Caesar, Dead White Males, and Love for Love for the Sydney Theatre Company A View From a Bridge, All My Sons and David Williamson’s Sanctuary for the Ensemble Theatre and David Hare’s The Judas Kiss for Company B Belvoir. His most recent television work includes Blackjack: Ghosts, A Difficult Woman, All Saints, Water Rats and Stingers but Glen is probably best known in Australia as his satirical alter ego Dexter Pinion on the ABC’s BACKBERNER - a stitched up, conservative party backbencher whose policies are somewhere to the right of Ghengis Khan, "Last Train To Freo" marks Glenn’s feature film debut. Crew Bytes "LAST TRAIN TO FREO" was .......
directed by Jeremy Sims ["Last Train To Freo"]; screenplay by Reg Cribb ["The Return", "Last Cab to Darwin", "Gulpilil" and "Ruby's Last Dollar"]; director of photography Toby Oliver ["Looking For Alibrandi", "Tom White", "Silent Partner" and "Everynight Everynight"]; edited by Merlin Cornish ["Jack", "Stump", "Teesh and Trude" and "Scoff"]. Run Time 85 minutes Rated MA15+ [AUST] Copyright ©2006 - Dendy Films - All Rights Reserved Copyright Protected © 2006 - Impact Internet Services - All Rights Reserved