Head On

Head On
(1998)

Director: Anna Kokkinos

Cast: Alex Dimitriades, Paul Capsis, William Zappa, Julian Garner, Maria Mercedes, Eurgenia Fragos, Alex Papps

Nineteen-years-old. A little confused. A lot pissed off. Ari jams all his energy and defiance, pain and joy into one high-velocity night of dancing, sex and drugs. He's running 'head on' into his own kind of freedom. This is the story of Ari (Alex Dimitriades), a young Greek man in Melbourne, in conflict with his background, his sexuality, unable to come to terms with his future, and unable to express the turmoil within his passionate heart, or his individual head. His only mode of self-expression is in excess: in sex, in drugs, in anti-social and anti-authority behaviour, rejecting his parents but also rejecting his need of them. Just as he rejects the notion of getting a job. And he somehow has to survive himself.



Review.......................
"My first reaction after viewing Head On was to take a long, deep breath.

Ana Kokkinos’ fiery Melbourne-based film is a tense and bold character study – one that is almost haunting in its realism. Perhaps the most daring of its production assets is the film’s dramatic script, which positions its protagonist in various off-putting homosexual, confrontational and drug induced acts. Disturbing stuff, that’s for sure – and Kokkinos knows it.

The reason why Head On is so uncomfortable to watch is because its director knows how to use unsettling images for intrigue, not for shock appeal. This is a powerhouse Australian film that is in many ways more confronting than the likes of Saving Private Ryan, for the reason that it depicts issues that are very real in today’s society. Kokkinos boldly looks at sexuality, ethnicity, drugs and gender in a raw and explicit manner. With tight editing and a rigid, unusually urban cinematography, Head On is a grating piece that explores the dissatisfaction of youth, and society in general.

Ari (Alex Dimitriades) is a nineteen-year-old Greek bisexual, who is confused by life and constantly searches for a path to happiness. He doesn’t find it in drugs or alcohol, nor does he in regular and unsatisfying sex. The film chronicles one day in Ari’s life, an intense twenty-four hours full of pain and occasional joy. Ari realizes the pathetic state of his life but fails to do anything about it – one gets the feeling that he is so far down and out that he will never quite be able to regain status.

Ari has pushed on, day by day, meeting men and women, and not thinking about what life might offer him. He is too busy taking everything a step at a time in the busy city of Melbourne (at one moment, much to my delight, there are shots of Flinders Street Station and Crown Casino).

Ari’s character works because of the revealing screenplay (which was adapted from the novel ‘Loaded’) and Alex Dimitriades’ gutsy performance. I thought that Russel Crowe’s choice of role in 1994’s The Sum of Us was game, but compared to this it looks ordinary. Dimitriades is one hell of a brave actor. Limiting the emotional success of this story is its lack of characters; aside from Ari, there is really nobody else the audience can relate with. But perhaps this is done intentionally, as Ari alone provides the basis for an intriguing character study since he is such a complicated person. His actions are not always understandable – but that’s how people are sometimes. Whenever his life seems to be lightening up (if only for a few moments), we are brought down once again into his depressing state of affairs.

Some of the final words spoken by Alex Dimitriades are cynical and somber considering all that we have witnessed his character go through, yet they express the moving and painful expression that this film generates. "I’m sliding toward the sewer, not struggling, I can smell the shit – but I’m still breathing. I’m gonna live my life. I’m not going to make a difference, I’m not going to change a thing."

If you’re feeling brave, take a long, deep breath and watch Head On. .............."

.......Head On is an amazing film. Its beauty and treasures lie in not judging the journey taken in the film but opening up to the experiences of a young man lost and hidden. Its not a bright, gay film but rather a fiery drama which doesn't offer answers but depicts a painful truth which many would prefer to disregard. This is a film about the loss of hope in the jaded nineties.

It is very much a local film (shot in Melbourne) and an Australian film, but I think it offers up wider and more general issues.

Few films capture the mood of the 1990s quite like Head On. It is a film embedded with characterisitics which intuitively identify the strangely blank decade that edged up to the 21st century. If the eighties was - though simplistically - regarded as the decade of high paced materialism. The 90s can be seen as a time of conservatism and cautiousness - again too simplistically - which could be regarded as the tired decade. A time imbued with a feeling that everything had already been done. Grunge embodied this, as did the increasing popularity of pastiche and remakes such as the way television shows were more and more the source for films. It was a time where even moreso than in previous decades - the answers and ideas were sort in ready-made forms. Reused, resurrected and exploited. Sarcasm and cynicism became law. Pettiness became more and more common. Many of us were just tired out.

Ari, the central character in Head On played with brilliant vibrant vividness by Alex Dimitriades, is the embodiment of this tired feeling. He reacts to the world by going to extremes in an attempt to register some feeling, a momentary intensity. Since there is nothing new to be found, he embraces fleeting bursts of passion and uses anything that helps him escape the exhausted sensation whether through drugs or sex, people or music. Anything that he can do to keep himself isolated and inside his own individual mind, he races toward. Head On.

He's gay but not proud. He's Greek-Australian but not interested. He's young but may as well be old. History is an excuse to crap on and foster negativity. Ari can't contemplate love because he's lost between the cracks of a society he doesn't care for and doesn't want to contribute to maintaining. He doesn't trust but he yearns, somewhere deeply, for some sense of security or truth. The film follows his search for reason in the chaos of his life in a world of silences and charades. But for Ari, there can be no reason. He feels doomed. Sensation is his only food, the only way to quench an indiscriminate, blind thirst.

Dimitriades puts his body and soul into the role of Ari. Its the performance of commitment and intense passion for the role. He doesn't flinch at the frontal nudity or gay sex scenes as other actors might have and hence brings to the role an authenticity which is the spine of the film. But the supporting cast are equally well cast and powerful. Paul Capsis radiates every scene as Toula/Johnny, Ari's gender-bending cousin. Julian Garner is perfectly contrast as the one person who loves Ari enough to try and show him hope rather than dismissal. In fact, the script ensures even the smallest roles are provided with weight through the powerful and serious screenplay. The book from which this film was born - Loaded by Christos Tsiolka- is an excellent expansion of the films vision.

The soundtrack is split between roaring alt-rock and techno-pop with some interesting surprises. The whole film comes together with a precision and ease which never feels unnatural or artificial. This is a raw but tight film. It deals with issues intelligently and strongly without judgement or fear. The loss of hope shown here is left to be dealt with in our own lives, and with the people we meet. I think the film provides a welcome opportunity to reflect on the destructiveness of notions like identity and truth in a world which increasingly blurs examples that aren't suitable or fashionable..........''


Alex Dimitriades

Alex (Alexander) was born on December 28, 1973 in Sydney. His parents immigrated to Australia from Greece, but divorced when he was twelve. Alex's got a brother, George, and a sister, Melissa, and went to an all boys school with uniforms and strict teachers, but liked it there.
He likes good documentaries, travelling, playing rugby league and soccer, and listening to music (New York house and Junio Rough Groove). His favourite films are The One And Only, The Legendary and Scarface, and his favourite actors are Meryl Streep, Al Pacino and Robert de Niro. The most embarrassing thing that's ever happened to him is being thrown over a fence into somebody's backyard pool by a group of friends at twelve.
When Alex was 17 and a high-school student in a Sydney suburb, the casting director of The Heartbreak Kid visited his school looking for someone to play the lead role of Nick Polides, and Alex, who'd never acted before but thought he'd give it a try for a laugh, went to audition. Being in big productions - first the film, then the television series - was fairly daunting, but as Alex's own family is Greek and Nick's personality is quite like his, he could understand and identify with Nick straight away. Alex found it easy to play a character with so much energy.
He was the first real star of Heartbreak High and very popular, but his character Nick died in the last episode of series 1 because Alex wanted too much money for his role. Producers Gannon and Jenkins much wanted him to stay, but the television station wouldn't allow it. Because the viewers never actually saw Nick die, rumours of his return kept going.
Once he had left the show Alex appeared in the film

The Blonde Man in 1994, in G.P. in 1996, and in stage production Wogboys. Moreover, Alex played Ari, who uses hard drugs and has rough sex with other men, in the 1998 film Head On. After he'd read the book the movie is based on, Loaded by Christos Tsiolkas, he was impressed but freaked out. The movie's sex scenes were scary for Alex, and he was worried about being too convincing, though he'd never kissed a man before. Pictures from Head On
The critics were rapt: "his performance is sensational", "we've seen some great performances from Australian actors before, but how many of them have been this good?", "he has a great future as an actor ahead of him and this film is a milestone which will bring him to the attention of the international market". After making the film Alex considered giving up acting, but didn't, and he now laughs at the idea. He's only become more successful, and got scripts from America.
His girlfriend is Australian shoe designer Terry Biviano.

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- Subterano, 2003, as Conrad
- Greeks On The Roof, tv series, 2003, episode 1.11, as himself
- Ghost Ship, 2002, as Santos
- Young Lions, tv series, 2002, as Det. Sr. Const. Eddie Mercia
- Let's Get Skase, 2001, as Danny D'Amato Jr
- La Spagnola, 2001, as Stefano
- The Love Of Lionel's Life, tv, 2000, as Steve
- Farscape, tv series, 2000, episode 2.5, as Lieutenant Velorek
- Wildside, tv series, 1998-9, as Charlie Coustos
- Head On, film, 1998, as Ari
- Neighbours, tv series, 1996, as Steve George
- Blue Murder, tv mini series, 1995, as Warren Lanfranchi
- Heartbreak High, tv series, 1994-5, as Nick Poulos
- The Heartbreak Kid, film, 1993, as Nick Polides