PALM BEACH
Australia / 2019 / 100 min/ DCP / Comedy Drama

Directed by Rachel Ward

Script : Rachel Ward, Joanna Murray-Smith
Cinematography : Bonnie Elliot ACS
Editing : Nick Meyers
Production : Deborah Balderstone, Bryan Brown

Cast : Bryan Brown, Matilda Brown, Sam Neill, Greta Scacchi, Richard E. Grant, Jacqueline McKenzie

Tribute to Sam Neill

On the occasion of his 73rd birthday, long-marrieds Frank and Charlotte are entertaining family and friends at their spectacularly airy, low-slung home perched above the stunning natural beauty of the ritzy Sydney peninsula Palm Beach. Joining them are longtime couples Leo and Bridget, as well as Billy and Eva. The men of the group are old friends, representing three-quarters of the Pacific Sideburns, a fictional band that peaked in 1977 with the modest hit “Fearless”.
A bash like this wouldn’t be complete without grown kids, and as with any such soirée, there’s a clutch here, the most prominent and pivotal of which are Frank and Charlotte’s two, aimless son Dan and new doc Ella.

Rachel Ward

Rachel Ward was born in England. She has been married to Bryan Brown in 1983. She is an actress, scriptwriter and director. She is known internationally as the lead actress of TV series The Thorn Birds and for films like Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1982), Against All Odds (1984) or TV Movie On the Beach (2000). She has directed many shorts films including The Big House, Martha's New Coat before directing in 2009 her first feature Beautiful Kate (In competition at the 12th Saint-Tropez Antipodes Film festival, 2010) followed by Palm Beach (2029) and the documentary Rachel’s Farm (2023). She also directed many TV series including episodes of Rake, My Place, The Straits, Devil's Playground as well as the TV movie “An accidental Soldier” (2013).