Day and Night has been shown on Australian TV four or five times and I watch it again every time and appreciate it more each time. I am not surprised that other viewers either love it or hate it. This is the mark of a good movie! Also, I am not surprised that it was originally promoted as a dark comedy. In my last viewing I often found myself laughing at some scenes but, of course, the subject is unrelentingly grim.
What I like most is the screenplay technique of using the claustrophobic car for the whole movie. It would work equally well as a stage play, yet it is still cinematic. The use of the car conveys the sense of a journey (like life), the ultimate road movie if you like! The final scene is a cinematic gem (the rain as tears, the empty front passenger seat).
Above all I found myself caring for the characters, all of them. This is the mark of good writing. The top-notch casting and performances contribute to this empathic response but it is the dialogue that is so engaging. In particular, Thomas' wife, his son, his sister, his lover and even his mother (who remembered him at the end) all love him. His other travelling companions care about him, even the old man (who confides his innermost thoughts), Jacob (who respected him) and the "whore" (who will not do it for money!).
More importantly Thomas loves all his family because, like a child, he wants to hurt them by his goodbyes. The scene where Emil rejects him, outside the car, and then Thomas cries when he returns to the car, is a heart-starter. Thomas is clearly in emotional pain. Yet he can't think "outside the box". This is why the scene with Emil's dead bird is so sad because Thomas is a canary in a cage by choice. Thomas says he will hurt his family less when he is dead. Oi!
My response to this movie is that I want to reach out and stop the car...... That, my friends, is good movie making! If I was a depression-counsellor I would show this to my clients! I think anyone who was depressed would understand Thomas and see he was in a cage of his own making. Call me irresponsible if you like.
Anyway, I am looking for the DVD (Region 4) and can't find it yet.
