Head On (1998) on Netflix
Nineteen-year-old Ari lives with his Greek Australian family in Melbourne, hides his drug use and his nights with men, and clashes with his father. He is drawn to Sean, his brother's housemate.
- Netflix3.2/5
- IMDb6.5/104,790 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes63%
Trailer
Plot summary
Ari is nineteen, unemployed, and living with his working-class Greek Australian parents and his sister in Melbourne. His father Dimitri, a Marxist, lectures him about responsibility, while his mother Sophia worries about him and shields him from his father's anger. Ari keeps his drug use and his casual encounters with men from his family. His friend Johnny defies the community as a cross-dresser known as Toula, and Joe is marrying Dina because it pleases their families. Betty, Joe's sister, also chafes against her Greek background. When Ari stays at his brother Peter's student house, he senses a romantic pull toward Peter's Anglo housemate, Sean.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Head On (1998)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- The police-station bashing of Ari and Toula in Head On was written for the film and does not appear in Christos Tsiolkas's novel. Director Ana Kokkinos hired a police officer during rehearsals to judge whether the scene was overblown; he replied, "No. Quite the contrary."
- Head On was Australia's first example of New queer cinema, and it is regarded as a landmark piece of Australian queer cinema.
- Head On divided the Greek community in Australia. Director Ana Kokkinos said the film opened a dialogue between younger Greeks and their parents and had "broken down barriers".
