Crimefilms are commonin Australiancinema;however,Burning
Kissappearsto be moregearedtowardsstylisedneo-noir.Is this
point of differentiation something that you set out to have?Australiancrime films definitelyfavourthe ‘gritty’expressionof
noir.However,forBurningKiss, I focusedonthemoresultry,
‘hot’expressionofthegenre,whichperhapsoriginatesfrom
the west-coast/ Californianfilm noir tradition.I feel this ‘sum-
mernoir’stylewaspickedupbytheEuropeanneo-noirthrillers
ofthe1960sand1970s,whichofteninvolvedmurderplots
mixedwithcharactersrelaxingaroundpoolsandvacationing
[...]It’sa traditionthatpossiblystartedwithPurpleNoon[René
Clément,1960]in Europeandgoesallthewayuptothings
likeSexy Beast[JonathanGlazer,2000].In this world [...] the
ocean– and,in particular,theswimmingpool– symbolisesa
liminalspacewherefantasies,sexualorviolent,canbereal-
ised.Thisis somethingI triedtopresentinBurningKiss.
That being said, I wantedto approachthe film from almost
a playful,‘outsiderart’wayin thetraditionof[experimental
filmmaker]Jeff Keen or [undergroundvideo artists]the Kuchar
Brothers,rather than feeling tied to any specific rules of noir
or neo-noir.I guessthis approachto noir is
quitefreeing,from both artistic
and story standpoints.Noir is such an amazingstyle
toexplore,asit hasbecomea
wonderfulshorthandforsome-
thingverydirectandaffecting
that’s both immediatelyidentifi-
able and difficultto describe.
It hascompletelytranscended
its history[of comprising]film
adaptationsofpulpliterature,
andis foundeverywherefrom
photography,visual art, archi-
tecture,music,fashionand so on as a powerfulexisten-
tial expression of something to do with sex and death.How did you come up with the film’s pulpy-sounding title?It’sfroma particularlyexplicitmomentin Bataille’sStory
of the Eye[...]andalsosaidin a voiceoverfromThe Ten
Commandments[Cecil B DeMille,1956].The title is imme-
diateandfun,in a neo-Sirkian^4 way – like a [RainerWerner]
Fassbinder or [Pedro] Almodóvar film title or something.The FrenchNew Wave(or NouvelleVague)is anotherovertinflu-
ence onBurningKiss. How did this particularmovementinspire
you, and who are some other filmmakers who have influenced you?There’ssomethingincrediblyexcitingabouttheFrenchNew
Wave and the other ‘new waves’that were happeningat the
timein variouscountries.Therewasa tremendoussenseof
explorationin regardtotheclichésandtraditionsofcinema.
Thesefilms are concernedwith deconstructingthe form of
film (editing,mise en scène,use of music,etc.), whichof
courseinspiredand liberatedother filmmakersaroundthem.
Persona[1966],forexample,certainlyfeelslike[director
Ingmar] Bergman’s response to the Nouvelle Vague. It’s aninterestthatseems to have fallen somewhat out of fashion
thesedays.
FromtheNouvelleVague,directorsI’mquitefondofinclude
ClaudeChabrol,withhisice-cold,contemplativeapproach
to the [Alfred]Hitchcockstyle; [his films] have Hitchcockian
plots,buttheengineis different– almostanti-suspense.Other
filmmakersI love are Mario Bava, [Federico]Fellini,Nicolas
Roeg, KennethAnger,[Robert]Altman,[Martin]Scorsese, Ken
Russell, [Stanley] Kubrick and Hitchcock himself.Surrealismplaysa part inBurningKiss, too; there’s a whiff of
David Lynch to the proceedings.David Lynchwas definitelya big inspirationaroundthe time
I was developingthe film. My favouritesof his areEraserhead
[1977],Blue Velvet[1986]andMulhollandDrive[2001].Lynch,
ofcourse,hassucha recognisablestyle,andhasintroduced
a newvocabularyintothenoirtraditionpredicatedonmood,
mysteryandextremitythat,at itsbest,is irresistible.
I wasalsointerestedin thepop-arttraditionand wanted
to incorporate this stylistically into the film.What,in your opinion,makesAus-
tralianfilmmakers’renditionsof
noir distinctfrom their counter-
parts in other countries?I think the Australiantradition
seemstoplacea strongempha-
sisonmasculinityandhowcrime
functionsasa kindofmalerite
of passage.Stylistically,it seems
tofavourkitchen-sinkrealism
withwryhumouroverthemore
seductiveandexpressionisticele-
ments of noir [made elsewhere].And locationis significantas well.
Whatdo you thinkPerthoffers as a setting for the unfolding of
this particular noir story?Probablyisolationandheat,whicharewonderfulmetaphors
fortheneo-noirtradition.Perthis a relativelysmallcity,with
noneighbouringmajorcities,[andis located]in a statethat
is mostlydesert– roughlythe size of Texas and Alaskacom-
bined.It’s a picturesquecity with beautifulweather,but it defi-
nitelyhasitsownsunbakedweirdnessandI think isolation is
a fundamentalpart of the cultureof the city.
But, in my film, I didn’t really representPerth per se, nor
is it mentioned at all; [the film is] more of a fantasy world.BurningKissis a very visceralviewingexperience;whilewatch-
ing it, you can almostfeel the heat. In someways,it reminded
meofCatona HotTinRoof(RichardBrooks,1958)or Australia’s
ownWakeinFright(Ted Kotcheff,1971).How importantwas
it for you to accomplish this atmosphere, and how did you go
aboutachieving it?Veryimportant!I wasreadinglotsofBatailleatthetimeof
writingthe film, and I was fascinatedby his explorationsof
creatingthematiclinksbetweenthesun,theeroticandthe
dangerous. In film terms, there’s an opening to a film called‘INTHISWORLD...
THEOCEAN– AND,IN
PARTICULAR,THESWIMMING
POOL– SYMBOLISESA
LIMINALSPACEWHERE
FANTASIES,SEXUALOR
VIOLENT,CANBEREALISED.
THISIS SOMETHINGI TRIED
TO PRESENTINBURNING KISS.’—ROBBIE STUDSOR36 • Metro Magazine 201 | © ATOM