Beautiful, moving film.

Absolutely Fantastic

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

It's ironic this review is marked with a spoiler warning because nothing much happens. Near the beginning of the film James Mason's character is naked in bed with a woman (although they are both covered with the bed sheets) while watching a TV interview of himself say - "I don't have any plans, just wander around a bit and take a look". There you go, this moment says everything about this movie. From here onward you are wasting your time watching the movie because things happen for no apparent reason ... unless you are hanging around to see Helen Mirren topless. So anyway, he goes to a secluded island to paint because he does, he uses Helen Mirren as his model, while she is swimming he asks her to go naked because, (paraphrasing) he "doesn't like how the dress affects her form" - she waits - "and I'll pay you $1.50 an hour" - she takes her dress off. If you were hanging around to see Helen Mirren topless then you have seen everything you wanted and you can stop the movie there.As a "coming of age" movie, as a romance movie or as whatever label you try to put on this movie - there is no real story. The movie doesn't really explore anything interesting such as their relationship, her sexuality, his desires, his mindset or anything. A lot of nothings happen then movie ends when he decides to get in the water with her. I give the movie 3 stars because the actors are not awful and the island is pretty.

Australian artist Bradley Morahan has no difficulty selling his paintings in New York but is having difficulty finding the inspiration for new works; he needs to get away from the bustling city and back to the remote Queensland coast he came from. Once back he and his dog move in to a one room shack on a small island. There are only three other people living on the island; teenage girl Cora, her drunken grandmother and middle aged Isabel Marley. He strikes up a friendship with Cora as she sells him seafood and a (stolen) chicken. She needs the money so she can get away from her awful grandmother who takes all the money Cora earns selling local seafood to a mainland shop and spends it on gin. Wanting a model Bradley offers Cora fifty cents an hour to pose for him; $1.50 if she will do it naked. It isn't long before she almost has enough to leave the island once and for all; she just has to make sure her grandmother doesn't find where she has hidden it. It looks like Bradley could have money troubles too when old friend Nat Kelly turns up begging for a loan and willing to just take the money if it isn't given. When Cora's grandmother finds her money she accuses Cora of prostituting herself to Bradley; he insists he just painting her but she insists that she will inform the police as Cora is under the age of consent.This film is fairly light but contains a good mix of drama and comedy. James Mason does a good job as Bradley although his Australian accent is a bit off... I guess that might be justified if he had been in New York a long time! The young Helen Mirren was charming as Cora even if she was clearly older than her character; not a bad thing given the number of times she is seen undressed. Jack MacGowran provides much of the comedy as Nat; desperate to get some money but not so desperate that he will stay on the island after the attentions of Isabel! The setting adds to the films charm; one can't help feel relaxed watching the blue sea lapping at the island's beach for much of the time. Given that there is a fair amount of nudity the film feels surprisingly innocent; they are just an artist and his model and it is filmed in a way that does not seem leering. This might not be a classic but it is well worth watching.

The British-Australian film 'Age of Consent' was released in 1969 - the same year as the publication of the semi-autobiographical novel of the same name on which it was based, and also the death of its author, the well known Australian artist Norman Lindsay. It appears to have once been released briefly in some North American cinemas but only in a heavily bowdlerised version with its playing time significantly cut. Until last year no DVD was available in North America although one was released in Australia in 2005, and until the film was shown on the TCM TV channel I did not even remember that it existed. The long delay in marketing it here seems a pity as it was a very enjoyable and rewarding film to view, but it is now part of a double label disk (with 'Stairway to Heaven') released by Sony which I recommend unreservedly to all IMDb users who are interested. It will probably appeal particularly to those viewers who also enjoyed 'Sirens', a better known film also featuring incidents from the life of the same Australian artist.The theme - a talented but burnt out artist taking a break from his regular lifestyle to recharge his batteries, and becoming re-energised through a chance friendship formed with a young person from a very different background - is somewhat hackneyed, but with a good cast it can still be very effective. James Mason, as Bradley Monahan gave one of the great performances of his career playing a jaded 60 year old Australian painter who returns from New York to an isolated island on the Great Barrier reef off the Queensland coast for what appears to be an extended vacation, whilst a 24 year old Helen Mirren - straight from the Royal Shakespeare Theatre - changed horses completely here to give a remarkably mature interpretation of Cora Ryan, a lonely and unsophisticated orphaned teenager trapped in an isolated and unrewarding life with her drunken and quarrelsome grandmother. When Cora meets Bradley she starts by regarding him as a possibly useful source of pocket money, quickly comes to respect him for what he is, and finally develops a real affection for him. Michael Powell, returning to directing after the failure of Peeping Tom, was as usual both deft and effective, although more easy going and less powerful than for example in Black Narcissus. The colour cinematography was mostly a delight - the three strip Technicolor process used avoided the garish colours so often encountered in travel documentaries and many major feature films. I felt that the principal weakness of this film lay in Peter Yeldham's film-script, but it may well have originated in Lindsay's novel. He was one of Australia's best known artists and during his long career as both artist and writer, one may assume that he must have experienced periods when he felt like the artist of his story; this film certainly conveys the feeling of becoming burnt out and drained of creative energy just as he may himself have experienced it. I have not read the book and my quarrel with the film-script may or may not also extend to it, but I felt that by featuring a long series of very unlikely events, it unfortunately made the film appear to be some sort of dream story or myth rather than a real life drama. In fairness both Lindsay and the scriptwriter may have been aware of this problem and have accepted it as inconsequential. Their object was to convey the reality of loss of artistic vision for any artist, and the final film-script did this very effectively. I found that, when I stopped analysing the mechanical details of the events shown, and concentrated on the emotions with which they were associated, my recognition of the exceptional quality of this film rose sharply.SPOILER AHEAD: The film's title is misleading for anyone who, like myself, is not familiar with the story - in it Bradley, a 60 year old worldly wise artist, makes no attempt to seduce his new under age model. Clearly if such a thought has ever entered his head he has rejected it instantly. But as Cora continued to model for him over many weeks they develop a very real friendship. The climax of the film is the confrontation which leads to the accidental death of Cora's grandmother (and the highly improbable sequence in which a local policeman decides that this does not even warrant a formal open inquest), Only after this, and right at the end of the film, does Cora show that she is very disturbed by the complete absence of any personal attention being paid to her by her new friend, something she feels must indicate some significant failing or inadequacy on her part. The film closes with Cora, reassured on this point, starting what appears likely to become a successful attempt to seduce him.

POSSIBLE SPOILERS If I understand correctly, "Age of Consent" was Helen Mirren's first starring vehicle. She was already a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company and, at 23, a real beauty. Playing opposite James Mason, then 60, Mirren acts the part of Cora, who wants to escape the Great Barrier Reef where she lives with her drunken and abusive grandmother, to become a hairdresser in Brisbane. Mason, as Bradley Morahan, a well-known and financially successful painter, comes to the reef from New York, seeking to restore his spirit in isolation. Disappointed to find others on the spit of land where he takes up residence, Morahan soon discovers Cora as a supplier of food. Shortly, he takes to sketching her and pays her to pose. Eventually, Morahan acquires everything needs to paint her. Mostly, she models in the nude, and she is often shown swimming naked under water. With exception of her pubic area, every part of her body is on display at one time or another, and an absolutely gorgeous body it is. Unfortunately, Mirren's nudity is displayed in the service of a story that is not very interesting and not very well told. Mason was a fine actor and is persuasive in his role. Michael Powell may have been excellent director, but his reputation was surely not built on the basis of this film. "The Age of Consent" refers to Cora's age, which is supposed to be 17 therefore making her sexually unavailable legally. Morahan displays no interest in having sex with Cora and, until the very end of the film, she shows no sign of wanting to have sex with him. But the age restriction helps to explain why grandma, normally very disagreeable, goes into an overdrive of sputtering rage at the interaction between Cora and Morahan. Mirren is slightly unconvincing physically at a 17 year old. However, she was already an accomplished actress when this film was made and her bearing and manner perfectly mirror the age of her character. I found this film interesting ONLY because it displays Mirren -- ALL of her -- at the beginning of a distinguished career. Mason, a fine actor, made many, many better movies.