The Year My Voice Broke is a beautiful coming-of-age movie from writer/director John Duigan, set in rural Australia, 1962. Young Danny (Taylor) is a scrawny fifteen-year-old besotted with his best friend Freya (Carmen), who has blossomed from a tomboy into a beautiful young woman. Unfortunately, while she loves Danny as a friend, Freya falls for a hunky slightly bad local boy named Trevor (Ben Mendelsohn), causing Danny to become jealous to the point that he decides to tag along when they go on a date, and tries mental telepathy to stop the two of them kissing.
There’s a dark secret that, once uncovered, changes the way the three kids look at each other, but at its heart this movie is about their relationships, not some great revelation. And thanks to moving, natural performances from Taylor and Carmen (who had never acted on film before), it’s well worth a look. Taylor reprised the role of Danny in Duigan’s sequel, Flirting, in which he is sent to boarding school and begins a relationship with a young Ugandan student (played by Thandie Newton). Nicole Kidman also starred.
Is The Year My Voice Broke suitable for kids? Here are our parents’ notes...
None.
If you like this, why not try: A Walk To Remember, Remember Me, Gregory's Girl, Some Kind Of Wonderful, October Sky,