“Seventeen year old Miklós Varga’s plans to escape his migrant family and run away with his best friend Dan are crushed by the accidental death of his older brother Tomi. Only Mik knows the events that led to this tragedy, and he is suddenly forced to navigate his guilt and explosive sexuality to find the man he can become.”
Teenage Kicks is a heart wrenching portrayal of burgeoning sexuality caught between tragedy and machismo. It demonstrates the anger of a young man: Mik, played by Miles Szanto, on the cusp of adulthood, unable to come to terms with himself. He seeks solace in all the wrong places and is oblivious to the genuine lifelines offered.
The supporting cast, including Home and Away’s Charlotte Best, and Shari Sebbens (Thor: Ragnarok), are all complex characters. A message to Mik throughout that he is not the centre of the universe, though that’s how he is behaving: each person has to come to terms with their own mistakes, and grief is a personal thing.
A coming of age film in the same bracket as My Summer of Love (2004), and Y Tu Mamá También (2001).
Teenage Kicks is directed by Craig Boreham, a pioneer of Australian queer cinema, known for his award winning short films. A feature length version of his 2009 short Drowning.
Available to buy from Amazon.
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