{"identifier":"PCO-Cactus_6312084977112","browse_author":"Paul Cox (Director), Jane Ballantyne (Producer), Paul Cox (Producer), Paul Cox Illumination Films (Proprietor (Publisher Bloomsbury Video)), Bob Ellis (Screenplay by), Norman Kaye (Screenplay by) and Paul Cox (Screenplay by)","subscription_list":["bvl_filmmedia"],"titleByTitle":"Yes","isbn":9781350896406,"description":"Cactus is the dramatic story of Colo (Isabelle Huppert), a visiting French woman, holidaying in Australia and Robert (Robert Menzies), a blind lecturer at a training school for the blind. The film opens with a car accident. Colo regains consciousness in hospital, and discovers she has been left sight-less in one eye. As the film unfolds, Colo's subjective viewpoint grows progressively more blurred, whilst in the drama, her doctor and Australian friends conceal from her the possibility that total blindness may be only a matter of time. Colo has no resources to cope with the impending tragedy, and when she begins to suspect blindness, her withdrawal from the world and her friends becomes complete. Her host, Tom (Norman Kaye), a cacti fanatic, persuades Colo to join him in attending a gathering at which cacti lovers meet and exchange secrets. One of the members, Robert, who has been blind since birth, despite his handicap, has managed to grow one of the finest collections of cacti in the country. Colo is stunned by his ability to feel things grow, and is touched by his serenity and peace of mind. Robert has never made love to a woman, or enjoyed the physical pleasures that Colo has experienced. His wit and knowledge surprises and entertains Colo, yet, at the same time, intensifies her sense of isolation and worthlessness. Despite Robert's reluctant attempt to cheer her up, Colo reaches the bottom of the pit. It is at this point that the mood of the film changes. Colo is becoming aware of other dimensions in her life, but selfishly, she does not realize that her physical closeness is starting to affect Robert. Inevitably they are drawn closer and closer, and their eventual love-making is an act of extraordinary tenderness and sensuality. Robert now is thrown into total confusion and chaos. The urgency of his physical awareness replaces the security of his inner-self and when Colo's husband arrives in Australia, Robert is not equipped to cope with his jealousy and anxiety. Colo however, is forced to make a decision about the security of her \u201cold world\" and the uncertainties, risks and challenges of her \u201cnew world\" in which she is confronted with the love and affection, the depth and humour of a man, who, in the eyes of the world, has nothing to offer. She has to make an important decision. Throughout the film the symbol of the cactus is a recurrent motif. The cactus is a plant that thrives on neglect, and it provides the drama with a brittle but telling edge. Both characters have a totally different concept of what they \"see\". For Robert it is a blend of imagination and legend. For Colo, it is a fusion of memory and impulse - two blind people teaching one another how to see. The moral is clear. Domination by our surface desires cannot bring us happiness. The neglect of our inner self prevents us from discovering the real nature of our consciousness. Director: Paul Cox Producer: Jane Ballantyne, Paul Cox Writer: Paul Cox, Bob Ellis, Norman Kaye Cinematographer: Yuri Sokol Cast: Isabelle Huppert, Robert Menzies, Norman Kaye Born in Holland and settled in Melbourne since the mid-\u201860s, Paul Cox wass an auteur of international acclaim, having received numerous international awards. He was one of the most prolific makers of films in Australia, with numerous features, shorts and documentaries to his name. He is the recipient of many special tributes and retrospectives at film festivals across the world, including a major retrospective at the Lincoln Centre in New York in 1992. His films of the early and mid \u201880s \u2013 Lonely Hearts (1981), Man of Flowers (1983), and My First Wife (1984) \u2013 were highly acclaimed both locally and internationally. \n Man of Flowers premiered in Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival in 1984, and went on to win Best Film at the 1984 Valladolid Film Festival as well as Best Foreign Film at the 1991 Warsaw Film Festival. Cactus premiered in Director's Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival in 1986 and Vincent won the Jury Prize at the 1988 Istanbul International Filmdays. \n A Woman's Tale won the Grand Prix at the 1992 International Flanders Film Festival in Ghent and Exile screened in competition at the 1994 Berlin International Film Festival. More recently, Cox's highly acclaimed feature Innocence (2000) won massive audience and critical acclaim, including Best Film and the People's Choice Award at the 2000 Montreal World Film Festival; and 5 Australian IF awards including Best Film, Independent Filmmaker of the Year for Paul Cox, and Best Actress for Julia Blake. Cox\u2019s career continued, with features such as Human Touch (2004) and Salvation (2008). He died in Melbourne in 2016. Language - English","videoId":6312084977112,"browse_view":"contentTypeBrowsePageIndexView","subscription":"bvl_filmmedia","title":"Cactus","xml_source":"bvl_filmmedia_video-vra.xml","browse_search":"PCO-Cactus","videoPoster":"https://cf-images.eu-west-1.prod.boltdns.net/v1/static/4171818645001/afb9979f-9fb1-42a8-9e7d-b9686a21803d/4a34fdd3-0dcf-4674-99fb-f09df69af0d4/1280x720/match/image.jpg","facets":"video , Video ,","contenttypeorder":3,"date_of_publication":1986,"publisher":"Paul Cox Illumination Films","productname":"bvl_all","id_search":"PCO-Cactus","facet":["video"],"contentType":"video","authors":"Paul Cox~Jane Ballantyne~Paul Cox~Paul Cox Illumination Films~Bob Ellis~Norman Kaye~Paul Cox"}