Originally produced for Australian television, TWO FRIENDS is the tale of Louise (Emma Coles) and Kelly (Kris Bedenko), best friends who drift apart when one of them is denied access to an exclusive all-girls college by her self-righteous stepfather (Peter Hehir). While Louise becomes educated but withdrawn, Kelly drifts into the punk scene and drugs, growing ever more estranged from her once closest pal. Told in an interesting reverse-timeline format, the film begins with Louise's parents attending the funeral of a girl friend of Kelly's, prompting worry on her behalf, and ends with the girls arm in arm at a particularly key moment in their blossoming friendship. This innovative technique is well used by Campion, packing an extraordinary emotional wallop. Low-key, realistic performances from the girls and the rest of the cast give the film a feeling of such intimacy that it at times seems like a documentary. It saw limited release as a theatrical feature in the U.S. after the success of Campion's breakthrough film, THE PIANO, and features inklings of that film's style with occasional inspired splashes of surrealism and dreamy narrative structure.
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