Advance Screening: The New Boy

After a confrontation with police, an orphaned Aboriginal boy (Aswan Reid) is sent to a remote monastery and home for boys, run by renegade nun Sister Eileen (Cate Blanchett). The kindly nun has a calming effect on the new boy, and he forms connections with Sister Mum (Deborah Mailman) and George (Wayne Blair), who manages the farmlands. The new boy soon becomes an established and unique presence at the monastery. But when he begins to demonstrate unusual powers and signs of a divine presence, Sister Eileen’s religious zeal intensifies, and things begin to unravel.   Warwick Thornton’s elegant and concise storytelling is augmented with spectacular images and a uniformly superb cast – including a group of very promising actors playing the boys at the monastery. A film of profound symbolism and impact, The New Boy finds Thornton at the height of his cinematic powers. ‘Thornton conjures the otherworldly power of Australia’s scorching red earth and its strange, vivid sunsets; in this story of spiritual resilience and communion with the divine, the landscape is an abiding, almighty presence. – Isaac Feldberg, RogerEbert.com