Somersault

Somersault (2004) focuses on 16 year old Heidi’s sexual exploration and longing for emotional closeness. The Australian film directed by Cate Shortland was a winner of 13 AFI Awards, winning in every category it was nominated. It stars Abbie Cornish (Heidi) and Sam Worthington (Joe), both pre –Hollywood.

After a confrontation involving kissing her mother’s (Olivia Pigeot) boyfriend (Damian de Montemas), Heidi leaves home in Canberra and escapes to the snow resort town of Lake Jindabyne. Eventually she meets Joe, a local farmer who finds it hard to communicate and yearns for his parent’s affection. This begins their casual and respectful relationship with each other. 

Heidi’s emotions become obsessed and narcissistic, in one scene Heidi uses a mirror to act in a pretend conversation with Joe and watch herself kiss ‘him’. It is a somewhat Travis Bickle (Robert DeNiro, Taxi Driver 1976) moment, from this scene on her character is no longer the same. Even though locals are mesmerised by her beauty, we are aware of the gaze of a potential predator, others are scared and take advantage. Heidi first encounters sleazy shop owner Roy (Paul Gleeson), on the basis of employment after he sizes her up and without hesitation says no. They meet again in the latter half of the film at her co- workers house and he informs her of being a bad influence on her co-worker and the community of Lake Jindabyne. The scene suggests rape, cutting to a vulnerable Heidi taking a bath.

Somersault is a beautiful compelling film that is dark and enriching. Although I look at Heidi’s journey to have reached a sad conclusion, it was r­­eassuring she patches up her relationship with her mother. As we see Heidi looking out her mother’s car window in tears, it can suggest that she may have been ‘rescued’, but does not mean her past is now history. The film subjectively ends for you to decide how you foresee the life of this once confident woman.