A Masterpiece!

Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.

This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

My quick rating - 3,6/10. Since I have to round up, it is tough even having to put 4 on this. The acting was just that painful to watch. It was almost like the actors and actresses were trying to make all the dialogue sound unrealistic. Cue card reading would've been more convincing than this was. After a supposed accident at a winery (yep, Australia is just known for their vineyards, and now, really bad acting) a daughter heads home to get to the bottom of what looks to be a homicide. In doing so, she uncovers some dark secrets in the murder mystery. Basically all the elements of a murder mystery are missing. I may have cared more if the acting wasn't so distracting. I could get a better conversation having Alexa and Siri going back and forth with Cortana as a mediator. Suffice it to say, you suffer through a lot of wasted time to get to a somewhat surprise ending, but not due to the murder. I should spoil it but I don't do that. Your life will still be complete if you miss this one, don't worry.

An outstanding debut feature from Riakos, that has certainly put her mark on the Australian Indie landscape and one to watch. 'Crushed' has been a strong contribution to the recent genre goodness that has come out of Australia, particularly female directed films. This film takes the viewer on a slowly intensifying journey, as a mystery thriller, shot beautifully showcasing the wine region of Mudgee; where it explores the interrelations of a somewhat disheveled family, and their close associates, uncovering their roles surrounding a death on the family's property. The performances from the cast are solid and engagingly understated, each character lending a piece to the mystery puzzle, while allowing the audience wanting to know more. Viewers are rewarded by exposing a truth that is largely unexpected and satisfying in its presentation.

Australian filmmakers have strong form with thrillers especially when they are set in our natural environment of wide red earth, rock-scapes and bushland as seen in the iconic Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) and Wolf Creek (2005). Novice writer-director Megan Riakos innovates in the genre by setting Crushed (2015) in a picturesque vineyard in rural New South Wales. This produces a picturesque stage for a gripping thriller that delivers far more than its tiny production budget, dozen or so actors and handful of creatives suggest is possible. Particularly praiseworthy is the beautiful cinematography that captures the ambiance of a vigneron's life and its contrast with the lingering menace of an unexplained death. The crushing of grapes and a daughter's quest for the truth become the binding metaphor for the story.The plot line is based on estranged young Ellia returning to the family vineyard after learning of her father's apparently accidental death. As she re-enters a world she fled because of family tensions, everyone becomes a possible murder suspect and the web of suspicion grows beyond the family to include police and neighbours. Several red-herrings are dangled in fine Hitchcockian form, like the obvious uncle with the lethal glare who appears well-settled in a relationship with her mother, and it eventually emerges that almost everyone disliked her father. She is increasingly isolated and vulnerable, and even her policeman boyfriend becomes a sinister threat. For a novice director to continue building tension and plot developments throughout most of the film is quite an achievement, and the off-the-shoulder camera work adds a nervy pace that balances some fine classical framing of vineyard landscapes that are visually delightful.At the film's Sydney preview Q & A session, Riakos enthused that her team opted for independence rather than the usual professional funding and assistance pathways in making Crushed. In some respects it shows. The acting ensemble could have used an experienced star persona who might have lifted and evened out performances where needed.For example, in the film's final moments when three characters are entangled in discussion with a knife against one throat and a rifle ready to fire at others, none plausibly show fear or emotional stress. There are also parts of the narrative arc that show signs of over-cooking. Hitchcock knew that less is more: one death can make a taut thriller but five can make a farce. As with so many films, the ending does little justice to the effort but its high-points clearly hover above its limitations. Overall, its a gripping story in a beautiful place that shows great promise for its creator.

The core of this movie is a well-written script with enough twists to keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end. This is a modern take on the Alfred Hitchcock-style thriller. Sarah Bishop is a standout as a young woman, Ellia, who returns home for her father's funeral only to find that he was murdered and her mother is the prime suspect. Alone and isolated, Ellia must not only solve the mystery of her father's murder but also deal with the traumatic event that caused her to flee the family vineyard. Megan Riakos wrote the script and directed it, and the result is a tight, cohesive thriller that is also visually stunning. Crushed is an exciting movie that is a refreshing change from the formulaic action movies and derivative comic book franchises so common in the big multiplexes today.