Age of Consent (1969)

Last film directed by Michael Powell, once of Powell & Pressburger fame. James Mason is Bradley Morahan, a world famous painter who returns to his native Australia for much needed inspiration. Renting a bungalow on a small, sparsely populated island off of Queensland, Morahan rediscovers the joys of life through his friendship with Cora (Helen Mirren, in her first major screen role) a poor, slightly naive girl not yet 18. Certainly a product of its time, the film is meant to be a celebration of discovery, but comes off rather muted and often slow. I kept feeling this was more of a book then a movie, and it just didn’t do it for me, though it was neat to see Helen Mirren that young. 2 out of 5