I'm telling you the truth', are Cressy's words to Nona as she reveals the truth about their relationship. It is dreadfully difficult for Cressy to confront her past and inform her daughter of the truth, but only when she does, is she freed from her past and able to embrace her future. Such memories are revealed through the burning of their house. The blazing fire symbolizes the destruction and cleansing of the terrible memories linked with their home. Following the fire, Cressy becomes more relaxed, as an understanding and emergence of truth and reality takes place within her. It is only after this, that she can lay the ghosts of the past and progress forward. .
The audience's first view of Mae is in the opening credits, and the second view is of her lying sprawled across the couch, asleep, her appearance brutal. Her first words in the film are negative, portraying her character to be cynical and jaded. Mae is the middle sister, who nursed their mother through the last few years of her life. This experience has made Mae bitter and resentful because she has spent her life trapped in their town, while her other sisters have escaped and lived freely.
Trisha Norton-Thomas is able to convey Mae's emotion very realistically as she expresses her feelings regarding her mother and her search for identity, I wanted to know where I came from'. Mae's scene on the beach is an exceptionally vocal part of the film, where she concludes the scene with an Aboriginal dance cry. Her make-up is neutral, hair simple and wardrobe unflattering. These aspects assist in portraying Mae as a stereotypical Aboriginal woman who drinks and smokes heavily. Only after the fire, is Mae able to end her suffering and escape the town and its memories with the support of her sisters. No longer does she envy them for escaping and leaving her behind, because the element of fire draws the three women closer together. .
The film begins with Nona, because she portrays innocence and is the glue that holds the three women together.
