Contrary to the way psychological repression works, by cutting himself off from his homosexuality, Sparra has also managed to separate himself from the violence (domestic and criminal) that got him into prison in the first place. Oddly, Sparra’s violent side has apparently never manifested in his relationship with Paula. Some of this violence gives Cut Snake a hypnotic quality as it swings between dream and nightmare, but this violence is also the place where the film starts to trip up. Just before Sparra and Pommy’s passion is unleashed, a key scene demonstrates the bloodlust that helped bond them for four years in prison. But certainly Sparra feels that he has to leave his gay life behind if he wants to live a peaceful life. Sparra’s ability to choose his life – including his sexuality – is at stake, and in 1974, that was a bigger choice than it is now. Merv becomes the bird-like Sparra (“sparrow”) and spawns tattoos which earlier had been kept from the audience’s view. Jim becomes Pommie (a puzzling name for a non-Englishman possibly an ironic reference to Jim’s unrefined manner). Hinting at the possibility that Paula will be left behind as the gay romance rekindles, Merv and Jim revert to the monikers they used in prison. 'Cut Snake kicks into gear when it lays bare what most other gangster films prefer to leave as subtext: the homoerotic bond between all these bad boys that dominate our screens.' Slyly, the title Cut Snake twists its standard colloquial usage suggesting insanity to become a vivid euphemism for a spurned lover. Suddenly, Paula is no longer the prize the men will clash over, but the very thing that is keeping the blokes apart. Jim and Merv were involved with each other in prison and at least one of them is still in love – and the violence they perpetrate is a form of foreplay for their mutual sexual satisfaction. It’s an audacious punt and cinematically overdue, given how much macho posturing movies subject audiences to.
Cut Snake kicks into gear when it lays bare what most other gangster films prefer to leave as subtexts The film’s dalliances with domestic violence and sexual identity seem to be too powerful for Ayres and Ayshford to contain or control that dominate our screens. Merv has a loveable Ashton Kutcher look, but behind those pouting lips there’s a secret he’d prefer was kept under wraps.
Sparra and pommie fanfiction movie#
When Jim arrives and insinuates himself as a houseguest, the movie feels like it’ll be the case of a clean-cut hero who fears being dragged back into mayhem by his shady past. The couple have their eyes set on domestic bliss and a semi-rural life together on the outskirts of Melbourne, complete with a home loan and veggie patch. Jim’s quarry, Merv (Alex Russell), is boyish but handsome, and is just about to get married to Paula (Jessica De Gouw), an attractive young woman from a well-to-do family. Set in 1974, the film’s opening establishes that recently released prisoner Jim (Sullivan Stapleton) is so determined to find a former criminal associate that he travels from Sydney to Melbourne to track him down. And if at the beginning Cut Snake seems coy – surely that’s just part of the giggle for wannabe tough guys who’ve never taken a fist to the face and an acknowledgement of masculinity as a form of theatre.
The film attempts to hook the wide audience enjoyed by Animal Kingdom, Underbelly and Chopper. With Cut Snake, director Tony Ayres and scriptwriter Blake Ayshford tap into the root of Australia’s obsession with murderous petty criminals. What sort of person would the critic prefer to sleep with, in fact.” – E. “To work out - The sexual bias in literary criticism.
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