Poor Cate Blanchett. In her new film, Little Fish, she is wasting away as a video store clerk while a successful career eludes her. Okay. Okay. So far, it’s relatable. But there’s more to her story; some sort of secret she is keeping. Well, not a secret really, since everyone seems to know about it. It’s just that no one wants to talk about it. Not her friends, not her family, not her co-workers. It has something to do with her brother’s missing leg. And perhaps something to do with the arrival of her ex-boyfriend Jonny, played by The Doom Generation’s Beheaded Quickie mart Clerk, Dustin Nguyen. Why is it hard for Cate’s character, Tracy Heart, to spend time with him? Or maybe it has to do with Hugo Weaving (The Matrix), who plays exactly the kind of sickly creature Agent Smith would detest. Weaving does an amazing job shedding his Matrix persona to become a hairy, high fiend. Or then again, it may have to do with Sam Neill, some sort of Australian gay kingpin.

Oh hell, I’ll just tell you. She’s a junkie. Or was one, back in the day, and Little Fish is all about her world and all the victims and perpetrators related to it. With its claustrophobic atmosphere and Australian mentality, Little Fish is an unconventional portrayal of self-destruction and preservation. Director Rowan Woods and writer Jacualin Perske do their best to keep her dark, tumultuous past below the surface so that everything she does, all of her relationships, are strained. The result is a narrative so sly that one may find it difficult to follow the plot.

Cate Blanchett is phenomenal - as usual. Playing a drug addict is fun, but Blanchett does wonders playing sober. The sadist in me wants her to downward spiral but Little Fish is more about the strengths of individuals, not their weaknesses. The critic in me is disappointed by this, but to complain about it is like saying Chicken should taste like Chocolate Cake. Sure, Chocolate Cake may be delicious and messy but Chicken is still tasty. And good for you. In conclusion, Little Fish is like Chicken. For Chocolate Cake, watch Chicken Little.

- Nikita Burdein