The Crossing (1990)

The Crossing is a film I imagine even most Russell Crowe fans haven't seen, if they were aware of it to begin with.  Never released on DVD in the United States, you'd have to buy this from somewhere in Australia or the UK to even be able to see it.  It's Russell Crowe's first real starring role, even though his first film appearance was Prisoners of the Sun, that was a very small and brief part.  And here Russell stars alongside the woman he will marry thirteen years later, Danielle Spencer.

The Crossing is a simple romantic drama about two youngsters in a small Australian town.  Johnny (Russell Crowe) has just asked Meg (Danielle Spencer) to marry him, yet it appears somethings holding her back from immediately saying yes.  The return of Sam (Robert Mammone) from the city soon brings some clarity to the situation.  Sam was Meg's old boyfriend who up and left 18 months prior for a life in the big city, no longer being able to stand the slow paced life of a small town.  

But there's a little understandable animosity in Meg's heart toward him because he left without ever saying goodbye, and now he's back with the thought that she'll miraculously still love him and follow him back to the city.  Sam also didn't seem to count on the fact that Meg would have moved on, and is surprised to discover that she's moved on and about to possibly marry his best friend Johnny.

As you can imagine Sam's return causes quite a bit of a stir, especially for Johnny who understandably sees Sam as a threat, and Meg who was finally getting over Sam now having to deal with the emotion of his return and wanting her to run off with him.  As the viewer you really can't have much sympathy for Sam, whose selfishness lead him to run off and leave his town and his girlfriend without even a goodbye only to return almost a year and a half later!  Now Meg must decide; will she marry Johnny, the man she's been with for over a year, or will she give Sam the man who she was in love with, who ran off without her, a second chance?

The Crossing would be a film I'd only recommend to Russell Crowe completists or huge fans of low budget Australian films.  Since it isn't available in the United States and takes a little effort and money to get, I would assume the appeal of it wouldn't stretch beyond those groups.  Simply put The Crossing isn't a great film, and if Russell Crowe hadn't been the lead I doubt I'd even be reviewing it. The plot is incredibly simple, the story is rather slow moving and the characters aren't very well developed.  But on the flip-side, The Crossing is far from horrible, it definitely has it's moments and the conclusion is rather solid.  Most importantly Russell Crowe owns the film, his performance makes it worth watching for anyone who considers themselves a fan.  And the soundtrack is made up of classic American rock and roll songs that have been re-sung by Australian artists which I found rather fun.

Overall, Russell Crowe makes this film worth seeing, if you're a fan that has to see everything he's done.  It's his first official starring role and his talent shines through, it's simply enjoyable to see him at such a young age with such a massive amount of talent.  Plus the fact that he's co-starring with his future wife (who doesn't do a bad job either) is fun as well.  So for about $12 on eBay it wasn't a waste of money in my opinion.  Although you can buy it for a few dollars more on Amazon or dirt cheap on Amazon.co.uk if you live in the UK.  I've ordered things from Amazon.co.uk in the past but since it was only 3rd party sellers selling it I couldn't get it shipped to me. 

6/10