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www.hollywoodreporter.com - : ''Lantana'' is a strong, consistently engrossing drama that boils with emotions distinctly real and recognizable. This brooding Australian drama might not scale the heights of commercial possibility that such films about fractured family politics as ''Ordinary People'' and the more serious works of Woody Allen do, but it possesses grace and spirit, not to mention a universally recognizable thematic undertow that might reel in an appreciative adult audience. more...
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www.eonline.com - : Like the resilient yet colorfully flowered Lantana plant, the bounty of characters featured in this engrossing psychological thriller are completely alluring but hardened underneath. Anthony LaPaglia gives a robust performance as an unorthodox cop trying to solve a murder mystery tied to a group of players linked by marriage, sexual liaison or happenstance. He's also having an affair with a separated woman (Rachael Blake). All the while, his wife (the comely Kerry Armstrong) is looking to remedy their passionless state with the aid of a shrink (Barbara Hershey), who herself is trying to repair her marriage (to Geoffrey Rush) and deal with the death of her daughter. Tangled? Sure. But the performances are gritty, and director Ray Lawrence does a noble job of keeping the pace natural and real. Through to the smartly orchestrated conclusion, Lantana continues to blossom. more...
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B+
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Critic Reviews
