POINT OF NO RETURN

Australia, 1994, 90 minutes, Colour.
Marcus Graham, Nikki Coghill, Doug Bowles.
Directed by Vincent Monton.

Point of No Return, was written and directed by cinematographer, Vincent Monton. After photographing a significant number of Australian films, he moved to direction with several thrillers.

Marcus Graham and Nikki Coghill were well-known at the time, appearing in television soap operas.

The film is a drama, focusing on Grady, Marcus Graham, and his escape after his brother’s funeral, seeking help from his past partner, Kate, Nikki Coghill, and trying to find out how his brother was executed by decapitation. His brother has left video for surveillance purposes which captures the execution and indicates to Grady who the criminals are, an arms dealing group.

The final part of the film is a confrontation with the criminals, the police who let Grady escape coming to the scene, shootouts. There is plenty of money for Grady and Kate, his brother’s passport. They go to the airport where there are some initial, slightly comic, difficulties – and then complete escape.

1. The title, expectations: drama, crime, police, thriller?

2. The 1990s, crime stories, international crime, weapons and deals, money laundering? International criminals, deals, executions? Police? Prisons? Escapes, pursuit? The musical score?

3. Melbourne locations, the cemetery, the streets, the bridge, the river, homes, the countryside?

4. Grady at the funeral, the words of the priest, the two police, Grady with the cuffs? Grady imprisoned, his brother being buried? In the car, the taunts of the police, his violence and escape, the officer not shooting him, diving into the river, emerging? Going to Kate’s house, her ballet moves, the past relationship, her reaction, the explanation? Her relationship with Chris? Her reluctantly helping Grady, driving? Going to the service station, trying to get help from Keith, memories of the past, his son and his being a threat? Going to Chris’s house, discovering Frank,the confrontation, the story?

5. The police officers, letting Grady escape, being ticked off? Going to Kate’s house, the phone? Going to Frank’s house, watching, confronting him, getting information, going into action, the international criminals, the shootout, deaths and woundings?

6. Kate and Grady, their past relationship, her moving to Chris, the story? The deals, radioactivity, discovering the camera, watching the video, the criminals with Chris, his decapitation? The surveillance of Kate and Grady?

7. Kate, the plans, the sexual encounter, whether to leave or not? The arrival of the dealers, the talk, Grady and his manipulation, the guns, swords? The arrival of the police, the shootings? The basement, Kate and the sword, killing the criminal?

8. The calling of the ambulance, asking for a day’s grace from the policeman, his agreeing? The ambulance arriving, their leaving?

9. At the airport, the technical difficulties for passport control, the machine registering the cuffs, Grady indicating his watch, their escape?

10. A piece of Australian crime escapism?