Chasing Asylum
{{short description|2016 documentary film}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{Use Australian English|date=July 2023}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Chasing Asylum
| image =
| caption =
| director = Eva Orner
| producer = Eva Orner
Annabelle Johnson (co-producer)
| writer =
| starring =
| music = Cornel Wilczek
| cinematography = Corey Baudinette
Khadim Dai
David Bacon
Michael Downey
| editing = Annabelle Johnson
| distributor =
| released = {{Film date|2016}}
| runtime = 90 minutes
| country = Australia
| language = English
| budget =
| gross =
}}
Chasing Asylum is a 2016 documentary film directed and produced by Eva Orner. It examines Australia's treatment of asylum seekers and refugees.
Production
The movie is a mix of interviews, news stories, press conferences and footage shot secretly inside the detention camps.{{Citation | last= Delaney | first= Brigid | title= Eva Orner on Chasing Asylum: 'Every whistleblower that I interviewed wept' - New film features shocking footage from within offshore detention centres. 'I wanted to make a film that would shame Australia', the film-maker says| url= https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/apr/30/eva-orner-on-chasing-asylum-every-whistleblower-that-i-interviewed-wept | periodical= The Guardian | date= 30 April 2016}}
Reception
Rotten Tomatoes lists {{nowrap|12 critics}} with 11 assessed as fresh and 1 as rotten. It gave the film a score of 92%.{{cite web | url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/chasing_asylum | title=Chasing Asylum | website=Rotten Tomatoes | accessdate=April 4, 2023 }}
The Guardian's Luke Buckmaster gave it 4 stars, writing "Its remit, after all, was to examine the human cost of stopping the boats. On those terms it is not just successful, but awfully and unforgettably effective: vital, evocative and gut-wrenching."{{Citation | last= Buckmaster | first= Luke | title= Chasing Asylum first look review – asylum seeker documentary is vital and gut-wrenching | url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/apr/29/chasing-asylum-first-look-review-asylum-seeker-documentary-is-vital-and-gut-wrenching | periodical= The Guardian | date= 29 April 2016}} Writing in the Age Jake Wilson gives it 3 1/2 stars concluding "But this must be the most thorough exposé yet of the so-called Pacific Solution, which for those it affects most directly is no solution at all."{{Citation | last= Wilson | first= Jake | title= Chasing Asylum review: Eva Orner's documentary makes concrete the horrors of Australia's immigration detention centres | url=https://www.theage.com.au/entertainment/movies/chasing-asylum-review-eva-orners-documentary-makes-concrete-the-horrors-of-australias-immigration-detention-centres-20160525-gp3csl.html | periodical= The Age | date= 25 May 2016}} Richard Kuipers of Variety gave it a positive review saying "Orner wisely chooses not to apply fancy frills to the film’s visual presentation. “Asylum” rests squarely, and entirely appropriately, on the strength of its humanist convictions and the power of its stories."{{Citation | last= Kuipers | first= Richard | title= Film Review: 'Chasing Asylum' | url=https://variety.com/2016/film/reviews/chasing-asylum-film-review-1201763518/ | periodical= Variety | date= 2 May 2016}}
Awards
- 6th AACTA Awards
- Best Feature Length Documentary - Eva Orner - won{{Citation | last1= Harmon | first1= Steph | last2= Buckmaster | first2= Luke | title= Aactas 2016: Mel Gibson's Hacksaw Ridge wins major awards | url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/dec/07/aacta-awards-2016-mel-gibsons-hacksaw-ridge-wins-major-awards | periodical= The Guardian | date= 7 December 2016}}
- Best Direction in a Documentary - Eva Orner - nominated{{Citation | last= Roach | first= Vicky | title= Mel Gibson's 'Hacksaw Ridge' leads AACTA Awards nominations | url= https://www.sbs.com.au/whats-on/article/mel-gibsons-hacksaw-ridge-leads-aacta-awards-nominations/7x7gva4ei | periodical= SBS What's on | date= 27 October 2016}}
- Best Sound in a Documentary - Andy Wright, Diego Ruiz, Mario Vaccaro, Adam Connelly - nominated
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|5134588|Chasing Asylum}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chasing Asylum}}
Category:2016 documentary films
Category:2010s Australian films
Category:2010s English-language films
Category:Australian documentary films