This is a heartwarming romcom about falling in love with Country, culture and family.

Miranda Tapsell, who co-wrote and produced, is Lauren, a successful young lawyer being mentored by kick-ass and slightly scary – but in a good way – boss Hampton (Kerry Fox). Lauren keeps ignoring calls from her mum, Daffy (Ursula Yovich), but when her goofy white fella boyfriend Ned (Gwilym Lee) proposes, she heads home to Darwin to plan a speedy wedding but finds her mum has gone walkabout.

The plots of romcoms are usually predictable. There will be obstacles and misunderstandings but at the end there will be love and sunsets and wedding bells. Top End Wedding signals it’s conclusion in its name but to get there, director Wayne Blair takes us on an exhilarating journey through Kakadu, Katherine Gorge and up to the Tiwi islands. He heroes the unique, red dust landscape as well as the deeply spiritual and connected First Nation cultures.

Lauren’s search for her mum becomes an allegory of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people dislocated from family, culture, and language. Whether by choice or through forced assimilation, Daffys, disconnection from her past can be seen as that of all indigenous people who feel they must make a choice between their culture and their chances of success in a colonised country.

The scenes on Bathurst Island are a highlight, showcasing the beautiful fabrics, language, art and dance of the island people. Lee and Huw Higginson as mate Trevor do a good job of carrying a thread of humour as gormless, gubba men and the three bridesmaids (played by Shari Sebbens, Elaine Crombie and Dalara William) are riotous, irreverent and just the kind of cousins you wish you had. It’s pleasing to see that the women aren’t pitted against each other, even Hampton who starts out as a typical spinster bitch stereotype.

As the final credits rolled, I was already dreaming of a trip to the Top End.