Harvie Krumpet (Oscar 2003)

You'll be surprised to see how such a sad story about a 'retarded migrant' could be so humorous. The naïve simplicity of Harvie is an extended metaphor for all that youth values in life - a clear sense of values and strength of family.
Continuing the themes of the intriguing outsider that Adam Elliot explored in his previous trilogy of short films - Uncle, Cousin, Brother - Harvie Krumpet is his most endearing character to date. Elliot, through his signature mix of comedy and pathos, carries us through the upside-down and back-to-front turns of Harvie's unusual, imaginative and imaginary life.
All his films deal with difference; people who are afflicted or marginalised. Elliot is interested in people who don't seem to fit in; the underdogs and the forgotten.



The story revolves around the life of Harvek Milos Krumpetzki, born in Poland in 1922. At the outbreak of World War II he comes to Spotswood in Australia as a refugee, and changes his name to Harvie Krumpet. Despite a life filled with bad luck, Harvie remains ever optimistic, living out his own eccentric way of life. He struggles constantly with what it is to be human. He is always looking for answers and has moments when everything seems so clear and the secret of life seems obvious. Throughout his disaster-ridden life, people around him come and go, but right to the end Harvie delights in the simple pleasure of life.
You can buy Harvie Krumpet.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

A touching and bittersweet story of a kind and lonely social outcast. An unlucky man without friends, fame or fortune Harvey is endowed with enthusiasm and optimism. He refuses to give up his passion for discovering new and interesting facts even when society treats him badly and everything that can go wrong in life does goes wrong.