Lantana is a 2001 Australian drama film, directed by Ray Lawrence and starring Anthony LaPaglia, Kerry Armstrong, Geoffrey Rush and Barbara Hershey. It is based on the play Speaking In Tongues by Andrew Bovell, which premiered at Sydney's Griffin Theatre Company. The film won seven AACTA Awards including Best Film and Best Adapted Screenplay. Lantana is set in suburban Sydney and focuses on the complex relationships between the characters in the film. The central event of the film is the disappearance and death of a woman whose body is shown at the start of the film, but whose identity is not revealed until later. The film's name derives from the plant Lantana, an invasive species of shrub prevalent in suburban Sydney, which is attractive on the surface but a tangle of dead wood on the inside. In the film it is a symbol of relationships, marriage in particular. Its tangled branches are a playground and shelter for children but a trap for adults. Plot A woman's body is shown in lantana bushes in suburban bushland. Leon, a policeman, and Jane have sex in a motel. They part, and Leon and his wife, Sonja, attend Latin dance classes that the recently separated Jane is also taking. Leon does not enjoy the classes. He savagely beats a drug dealer during an arrest. He has emotional issues but refuses to confront or admit to them, while Sonja sees a therapist, Valerie, who has published a book on her daughter's recent murder. She and her husband, John, barely speak; he refers to their marriage as surviving on their grief. Valerie feels threatened by another patient, Patrick, who is having an affair (with a married man by the name of Nik), forcing her to confront her marital issues. Jane purposely encounters Leon outside his station, and they have sex despite his reservations. Nik is upset at the relationship because he is friends with her estranged husband, Pete, who wants to return home. Jane pairs with Sonja in the next salsa class, angering Leon, who ends their arrangement, upsetting Jane. She invites Nik for coffee at Paula's behest, his wife with whom she is friendly, and offers him money as they are struggling. Paula now starts disliking Jane. Valerie, coming home late, crashes. Stranded, she calls John, unsuccessfully. She hails a vehicle but never makes it home. Leon is the investigating detective and searches her office.