F E A T U R E S

Interview: Polar Eclipse
Academic David McKnight challenges some sacred cows in his new book "Beyond Left and Right".

Industrial: Wrong Turn
Radical labour reform is on the horizon but some workers, like Sydney bus driver Yvonne Carson, have seen it all before, writes Jim Marr.

Unions: Star Support
It wasn't just families who backed workers' rights at The Last Weekend, but a bunch of musicians who set the tone, writes Chrissy Layton.

Workplace: Checked Out
Glenda Kwek asks you to consider the plight of the retail worker, and shares some of her experiences

Economics: Sold Out
The Future Fund and industrial relations reform are favourite projects of the PM and the Treasurer. Both are speculations on the future and the only guarantee with them is that you will be worse off, writes Neale Towart.

Politics: Green Banned
The impact of new building industry laws won’t be confined to one industry, writes CFMEU national secretary John Sutton.

History: Potted History
Lithgow is a place with a proud history as a union town. The origins of broader community solidarity lie in the early industrial development of the town and the development of unions. The Lithgow Pottery dispute of 1890 was a key event.

International: Curtain Call
The curtains have opened for East Timor’s young theatre performers, thanks to a Union Aid Abroad-APHEDA project.

Review: Little Fish
At last! An Aussie film with substance, suspense and a serious dose of reality, writes Lucy Muirhead

Poetry: Slug A Worker
In a shock development, the Federal Treasurer, Peter Costello, gave a ringing endorsement to the poetry pages of Workers Online, writes resident bard David Peetz.

C O L U M N S

The Soapbox
Families First
New Senator Stephen Fielding turned a few heads with his Maiden Speech to Parliament.

The Locker Room
The New World Order
Phil Doyle declares himself unavailable for the fifth and deciding test.

Parliament
The Westie Wing
Our favourite MP, Ian West, reports from the NSW Government's Safety Summit

Postcard
On The Bus
A bright orange bus travelling the state has become the focus of the campaign against federal IR changes. Nathan Brown was on board.

E D I T O R I A L

Middle Australia
The Prime Minister rarely responds directly to criticism, so when he rushed out a media release rebutting an ACIRRT analysis of wages data this week, it was clear that they had a hit a raw nerve.

N E W S

Trucks Run Down Mums

Boom! Biff! It’s Howard Unplugged

Fun Guy Spreads Fertiliser

Doors Close on Battered Mums

Bing Lee Peddles Rubbish

Bless This Bus

High Court: Ads Do Kremlin Proud

Families Water Win

Tesltra Cuts Get Poor Reception

Vegetable Campaign Sprouts

Check Work/Family Balance Here

Tim Wins For Union Aid Abroad-APHEDA

Activists What’s On!

L E T T E R S

WHAT YOU CAN DO

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Little Fish

Little Fish might just be the kick start the Australian film industry has been waiting for.

Independent cinemas are closing their doors across Sydney, critics throughout Australian are lamenting the downfall of Australian film culture and DVDs are being hailed as the final straw that'll break the industry's back. A few more solid, striking and intense films like this one and the film industry might just get back on track.

Little Fish features a stellar cast including Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving and Lisa McCune. Director Rowan Wood's urban masterpiece is set in the gritty streets and homes of Sydney's Cabramatta, a suburb synonymous with drugs and danger in the Australian Psyche. The film follows former junkie Tracy Heart (Blanchett) as she fumbles through the challenges of maintaining normality, post addiction.

Noni Hazelhurst plays Tracy's mum and is a surprise standout delivering a realistic and moving portrayal. Blanchett and Weaving prove that their international acclaim is well deserved. As a Sydneysider you can't help but think you've met these characters before.

Little Fish is exhausting and uplifting, tragic yet beautiful. Far from light entertainment it will have you holding your breath, wringing your hands and wanting to yell at the screen. Despite this intensity somehow Wood has managed to infiltrate this darkness with glimmering rays of hope.

At a recent preview screening of the film a representative of a drug an alcohol rehabilitation organisation had this to say.

"You won't enjoy it but you'll appreciate its honesty."

Having never experienced moments like these first hand I found Little Fish compelling and enlightening. Little Fish is swimming against the tide of the declining Australian film industry but thanks to outstanding performances, a fantastic script and wonderful direction it might just defy the odds.

Little Fish opens in cinemas across Australian on Thursday 8 September.

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Workers Online is a resource for the Labour movement
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URL: http://workers.labor.net.au/features/200509/d_review_fish.html
Last Modified: 15 Nov 2005