BALIBO is a gritty political thriller, based on a hardly spoken international incident which held strong repercussions in Australia, and is sure to hit a raw nerve upon its release.  

BALIBO is based on a true story, set during Indonesia’s 1975 invasion of East Timor. Shot in Darwin, Australia, and Dili, East Timor, director Robert Connolly captures the texture of a country torn apart by war, and presents testimony to the horrors committed there.

With the use of a parallel story structure, BALIBO depicts the final days of five Australian journalists - Greg Shackleton (Damon Gameau), Tony Stewart (Mark Winter), Gary Cunningham (Gyton Grantley), Brian Peters (Thomas Wright), and Malcolm Rennie (Nathan Phillips) - who were murdered by Indonesian forces while reporting on the impending invasion of East Timor.   

Investigating their disappearance was former foreign war correspondent, turned freelance journalist Roger East (Anthony La Paglia), who was brought to East Timor at the urging of then Foreign Minister Jose Ramos-Horta (Oscar Isaac).  

Once in East Timor, Connolly has his twosome follow the trail of the missing journalists, talking to witnesses – played by citizens who would no doubt still hold memories of the invasion – while dodging bullets in their quest for the truth. This leads to many confrontational scenes, with particular mention when the pair stumble across a field littered with decaying bodies.  

La Paglia and Isaac make a great duo, playing off each other very well while also delivering powerful performances.

This is especially the case with La Paglia, who although finding fame in America, has always delivered his best performances upon home soil. BALIBO is no different, with his Roger East an equally authoritative and sensitive figure, swaying from brutish anger to crippling fragility.  

Equally impressive are the actors who portray the Balibo Five. Connolly’s cat and mouse approach to the slaying of these men, coupled with the fine reactions given by the actors portraying them, culminates in a blood curling, gut wrenching, and violently blunt sequence, which will anger many.

That such an important piece of modern history is new to so many and hardly mentioned amongst those in the know, speaks volumes on the weight of silence given to these events. It was only when Jill Jollife’s book, “Cover Up” –upon which this film is based - hit the stands did the ghosts of East Timor’s past came back to haunt both Indonesia and Australia, respectively.   

This comes to the BALIBO’s main theme: accountability. With BALIBO, Connolly unashamedly places both the Indonesian and Australian governments in a bad light for their actions – or in the latter’s case, inaction – for the atrocities committed during this time. Hopefully enough controversy will be generated by BALIBO to have the truth acknowledged.