Storm Boy (2019 film)


Storm Boy is an Australian drama family film based on the novella by Colin Thiele of the same name. The adaptation was directed by Shawn Seet and stars Geoffrey Rush and Jai Courtney. Thiele's novel was previously adapted in 1976.

Plot

Based on the book, Storm Boy follows a young boy growing up on a largely uninhabited coastline of Southern Australia. He rescues three orphan pelicans and forms a close bond with them.

Cast

Storm Boy, an Ambience Entertainment production, was shot along the Coorong and in Adelaide, South Australia in July-August 2017. The Hudson Hornet used in the filming was supplied by a local South Australian car collector.

Release

The film opened in theatres in Australia and New Zealand on 17 January 2019, in Poland on 19 January 2019 and in the United States on 5 April 2019.

Box office

The film was released in 320 theatres in Australia on 17 January 2019 but it grossed only $874,000 on its opening weekend. By the end of its theatrical run in Australia, it had earned a total of $3.5 million. The film also grossed just over $600,000 in Poland and New Zealand when it was released over 17-19 January 2019. The film was released in the United States & Territories on 5 April 2019 but only earned $71,000. The total box-office for Storm Boy was $4.2 million against a production budget of $15 million.

Critical response

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 69% based on 39 reviews, with an average rating of 6.16/10. The site's critics consensus reads, "Storm Boy can't quite live up to the original, but this retelling of a beloved story retains enough of its classic source material's heart to remain worth a watch." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 67 out of 100 based on 7 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".