The Sapphires

Australia, 1968. Three sisters from an Aboriginal family and their cousin get nowhere in local talent contests because of racism. They meet a drunk Irish manager, drop country for soul, and set off to play for American troops in Vietnam. Wayne Blair directed. Chris O'Dowd plays the manager, Deborah Mailman plays Gail, the group's voice offstage, and singer Jessica Mauboy plays Julie. The story is not invented. A group called The Sapphires really did perform in the sixties, and screenwriter Tony Briggs's mother, Laurel Robinson, was one of them. Briggs wrote the stage play first; the film is adapted from it. Government policy of the era sits behind everything: the removal of Aboriginal children from their families enters the story directly. It drew a ten-minute ovation at Cannes, became the highest-grossing Australian film of 2012 at home, and won eleven AACTA awards. Who it is for: viewers who like feel-good films built on music and history. Who it is not for: anyone wanting hard edges; the film touches painful material and moves on.