The Tender Hook is a 2008 Australian film noir

Film noir

Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...

 starring Hugo Weaving

Hugo Weaving

Hugo Wallace Weaving is a Nigerian born, English-Australian film actor and voice artist. He is best known for his roles as Agent Smith in the Matrix trilogy, Elrond in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, "V" in V for Vendetta, and performances in numerous Australian character dramas.-Early...

, Rose Byrne

Rose Byrne

Mary Rose Byrne is an Australian actress.Byrne made her screen debut in 1994 with a small role in the film Dallas Doll...

 and Matthew Le Nevez

Matthew Le Nevez

Matthew Le Nevez is an award-winning Australian actor.-Early life :Le Nevez was born in Canberra in 1978 and attended The French-Australian School, Telopea Park School and St Edmund's College, Canberra before accepted into NIDA aged 17...

.

The film tells the story of a love triangle set in a stylised version of Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

’s criminal/boxing underworld in the 1920s. The story is about Iris’ rise to the apex of a love/power triangle that includes her English con man, lover, McHeath, and Art an honest, young boxer. Within the flawed moral landscape each character struggles to establish their sovereignty.

Production

The Tender Hook is the second feature by writer/ director Jonathan Ogilvie (Emulsion, Despondent Divorcee, This Film Is a Dog), and stars Hugo Weaving (Little Fish

Little Fish

Little Fish may refer to:*Benny Bass, American world featherweight champion & world junior lightweight champion boxer*Little Fish , a 2005 film directed by Rowan Woods*Little Fish , a 2003 musical by Michael John LaChiusa...

, The Lord of the Rings

The Lord of the Rings film trilogy

The Lord of the Rings is an epic film trilogy consisting of three fantasy adventure films based on the three-volume book of the same name by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. The films are The Fellowship of the Ring , The Two Towers and The Return of the King .The films were directed by Peter...

, The Matrix), Rose Byrne

Rose Byrne

Mary Rose Byrne is an Australian actress.Byrne made her screen debut in 1994 with a small role in the film Dallas Doll...

 (Marie Antoinette

Marie Antoinette (2006 film)

Marie Antoinette is a 2006 biographical film, written and directed by Sofia Coppola. It is very loosely based on the life of the Queen consort in the years leading up to the French Revolution. It won an Academy Award for Best Costume Design...

, Casanova

Casanova (2005 TV serial)

Casanova is a 2005 British television comedy drama serial, written by television scriptwriter Russell T Davies and directed by Sheree Folkson...

, Troy

Troy (film)

Troy is a 2004 epic war film written by David Benioff and directed by Wolfgang Petersen based on the events of the Trojan War. Its cast includes Brad Pitt as Achilles, Eric Bana as Hector.It was nominated for the Academy Award for Costume Design.-Plot:...

) and Matthew Le Nevez

Matthew Le Nevez

Matthew Le Nevez is an award-winning Australian actor.-Early life :Le Nevez was born in Canberra in 1978 and attended The French-Australian School, Telopea Park School and St Edmund's College, Canberra before accepted into NIDA aged 17...

 (Emulsion, Peaches

Peaches (film)

Peaches is a 2004 Australian film, written by Sue Smith and directed by Craig Monahan. The music was by David Hirschfelder, cinematography by Ernie Clark A.C.S., editing by Suresh Ayyar and art direction by Paula Smith.-Plot:...

).

Producers are Michelle Harrison and John Brousek (Hating Alison Ashley, Sensitive New Age Killer, The Wog Boy).

The crew includes: director of photography, Geoffery Simpson (Romulus, My Father

Romulus, My Father

Romulus, My Father is a biographical memoir, first published in 1998, by Australian philosopher Raimond Gaita, which outlines the life of his father, Romulus Gaita . A film adaptation of the same name was released in 2007, starring Eric Bana, Franka Potente and Kodi Smit-McPhee.-Plot...

, Under The Tuscan Sun

Under the Tuscan Sun

Under the Tuscan Sun is a 2003 film based on Frances Mayes' 1996 memoir of the same name. The film was directed by Audrey Wells and starred Diane Lane.-Plot:...

); editor, Ken Sallows (Getting Square, Crackerjack

Crackerjack

Crackerjack was a British children's comedy/variety BBC television series. It started on 14 September 1955 and ran for over 400 shows, first in B&W and later in colour, until 21 December 1984.-Presenters:...

); production designer, Peter Baxter (Lucky Miles

Lucky Miles

Lucky Miles is an Australian comedy/drama feature film based on several true stories involving people entering Australia illegally along the continent's coastline...

, Beneath Clouds

Beneath Clouds

Beneath Clouds is a 2002 film by Australian director Ivan Sen.Lena has an absent Irish father she longs to see and an Aboriginal mother she finds disgusting...

); costume designer, Cappi Irreland (Home Songs Stories) and composition of the score by Chris Abrahams

Chris Abrahams

Chris Abrahams is a Sydney-based pianist, best known for his jazz work.Abrahams has been a member of the Benders, the Laughing Clowns, The Sparklers and The Necks. He has recorded several solo albums, as well as collaborations with Melanie Oxley from the Sparklers...

 from The Necks

The Necks

The Necks are an experimental jazz trio from Sydney, Australia, comprising Chris Abrahams on piano and Hammond organ, Tony Buck on drums, percussion and electric guitar and Lloyd Swanton on bass guitar and double bass...

 (The Boys).

The film was financed by the Film Finance Corporation Australia, and Parkland Pictures (UK), with support from Film Victoria. Parkland Pictures (UK) handled International sales, with Icon Films distributing in Australasia.

Reception

The film was not a box-office success, earning only $64,232 against its $7 million budget.

Critics gave the film negative to average reviews. David Stratton

David Stratton

David James Stratton is an English- Australian film critic and television personality.-Life and career:Born in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, England in 1939, Stratton was sent to Hampshire to see out the war years with his grandmother, an avid filmgoer, where he was taken to the local cinemas regularly...

 and Margaret Pomeranz

Margaret Pomeranz

Margaret Pomeranz AM is an Australian film critic and television personality.-Early life:Pomeranz was born in 1944 in Waverley, a suburb of Sydney, and was educated at the Presbyterian Ladies' College, Sydney in Croydon, the then newly opened Macquarie University, and the Playwright's Studio at...

 both gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, with David explaining the film has "some very strong elements... [but] never really works as a thriller or as a romance"..

Cast

Actor	Role
Hugo Weaving Hugo Weaving Hugo Wallace Weaving is a Nigerian born, English-Australian film actor and voice artist. He is best known for his roles as Agent Smith in the Matrix trilogy, Elrond in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, "V" in V for Vendetta, and performances in numerous Australian character dramas.-Early...	McHeath
Rose Byrne Rose Byrne Mary Rose Byrne is an Australian actress.Byrne made her screen debut in 1994 with a small role in the film Dallas Doll...	Iris
Matthew Le Nevez Matthew Le Nevez Matthew Le Nevez is an award-winning Australian actor.-Early life :Le Nevez was born in Canberra in 1978 and attended The French-Australian School, Telopea Park School and St Edmund's College, Canberra before accepted into NIDA aged 17...	Art
John Batchelor John Batchelor (Australian actor) John David Batchelor is an Australian television and film actor. He is most known for portraying Chief Petty Officer Marine Technical / Chief Engineer Andy 'Charge' Thorpe on the Australian drama series Sea Patrol, and Peeto in the Australian feature film Red Dog.-Career:Beside portraing Andy...	Ronnie
Tyler Coppin Tyler Coppin Tyler Coppin is an Australian-American actor, playwright, and American dialect coach for actors in film, television and theatre.-Childhood and Education:...	Donnie
Pia Miranda Pia Miranda Pia Miranda is an Australian, multi-award-winning actress whose career was launched with her successful 1999 role in the feature film Looking for Alibrandi, an Australian film based on the novel by Melina Marchetta....	Daisy
Luke Carroll Luke Carroll -Television and film:Carroll started out in guest roles in some Australian shows, including The Flying Doctors, Lift Off, The Man from Snowy River, Ocean Girl and Water Rats....	Alby