TAKE A STEP BACK IN TIME AND SPACE WITH "WALKABOUT"

I was constantly surprised by this film. I mean , not least because it seems to have received not one honour nor nomination… I don’t know why I let that surprise me really – there is a lot of talent and good artwork out in the universe that doesn’t get recognition. Besides, I don’t think Walkabout is one of those films that will appeal to everyone these days…  It has some classic ‘70s themes running through it, but also some very accomplished acting from the young cast and some touching messages…

You know how life is all about the journey and not the destination… That’s why it’s kinda hard to give a blurb of this particular film, so I will give it a go. Through circumstance, a teenage girl (a young Jenny Agutter – you know, Sister Julienne from Call the Midwife!) and her young brother (played by Luc Roeg, director Nicolas Roeg’s son!) get stranded in the deserts of the Australian outback all alone, with no mode of transport and very little in the way of food (I know, how the heck do you pull that one off, right – that’s what I asked myself when I first read the blurb. But fear not, the film actually pulls this off with remarkable little need for suspense of disbelief. I was impressed). So there they are, basically, stranded and lost in the desert with no way of getting home and very little in the way of means to survive. All seems almost lost when they come across a young aboriginal man who is on “walkabout” (an aboriginal rite of passage where the young men of the tribe are sent forth into the world to live off the land alone for a certain period of time). It is the start of an unusual friendship, not least because there is no common language except body language between the two groups. And yet as the walkabout in the outback continues, it quickly transpires the two groups have much to learn from each other…

Looking back on the last paragraph, it’s not quite a fair description of the end – it is mainly the brother and sister who learn from their local guide and this in more ways than one. The film makes it very, very clear what its theme is from the start. It is all about man’s relationship with nature, how far what we call “progress” has taken us from our original habitat. The point is made over and over all through the film - starting from the fact that the children are actually English and already “strangers” in this foreign land. Apart from that, like in many children’s films (not least among them Mary poppins) the younger brother is the one who is more in touch with nature. He still instinctively “remembers” how to be in nature and can actually communicate with the Aboriginal boy after a fashion – but he has to act as interpreter for his sister… The radio they carry about with them (and that can, bizarrely enough, still receive signals and broadcast perfectly clearly in the middle of a desert) is a nice if rather forced contrast with the silence of the desert. In fact the film walks a fine line – it could very easily have had a bit of slip up into the realm of the didactic. But it does not.

One especially interesting theme pursued (and a very, very ‘70s summer of love one, may I add) is how our teenage heroine slowly bWALKABOUT

I was constantly surprised by this film. I mean , not least because it seems to have received not one honour nor nomination… I don’t know why I let that surprise me really – there is a lot of talent and good artwork out in the universe that doesn’t get recognition. Besides, I don’t think Walkabout is one of those films that will appeal to everyone these days…  It has some classic ‘70s themes running through it, but also some very accomplished acting from the young cast and some touching messages…

You know how life is all about the journey and not the destination… That’s why it’s kinda hard to give a blurb of this particular film, so I will give it a go. Through circumstance, a teenage girl (a young Jenny Agutter – you know, Sister Julienne from Call the Midwife!) and her young brother (played by Luc Roeg, director Nicolas Roeg’s son!) get stranded in the deserts of the Australian outback all alone, with no mode of transport and very little in the way of food (I know, how the heck do you pull that one off, right – that’s what I asked myself when I first read the blurb. But fear not, the film actually pulls this off with remarkable little need for suspense of disbelief. I was impressed). So there they are, basically, stranded and lost in the desert with no way of getting home and very little in the way of means to survive. All seems almost lost when they come across a young aboriginal man who is on “walkabout” (an aboriginal rite of passage where the young men of the tribe are sent forth into the world to live off the land alone for a certain period of time). It is the start of an unusual friendship, not least because there is no common language except body language between the two groups. And yet as the walkabout in the outback continues, it quickly transpires the two groups have much to learn from each other…

Looking back on the last paragraph, it’s not quite a fair description of the end – it is mainly the brother and sister who learn from their local guide and this in more ways than one. The film makes it very, very clear what its theme is from the start. It is all about man’s relationship with nature, how far what we call “progress” has taken us from our original habitat. The point is made over and over all through the film - starting from the fact that the children are actually English and already “strangers” in this foreign land. Apart from that, like in many children’s films (not least among them Mary poppins) the younger brother is the one who is more in touch with nature. He still instinctively “remembers” how to be in nature and can actually communicate with the Aboriginal boy after a fashion – but he has to act as interpreter for his sister… The radio they carry about with them (and that can, bizarrely enough, still receive signals and broadcast perfectly clearly in the middle of a desert) is a nice if rather forced contrast with the silence of the desert. In fact the film walks a fine line – it could very easily have had a bit of slip up into the realm of the didactic. But it does not.

One especially interesting theme pursued (and a very, very ‘70s summer of love one, may I add) is how our teenage heroine slowly becomes aware of her own sexuality. Her lithe teenage guide, after all, goes around with practically no clothes on (mind you, their school uniforms are getting pretty ragged at this point – yet another signifier of their contrast with their surroundings) and the implication is that her time spent in nature is liberating a sexuality that is repressed by modern society.

In short this delicate little number is very much a film of its time. The lack of big action, a workable soundtrack and any kind of special effects will probably mean it will not survive the scrutiny of the average movie-goers today that need a film to viscerally grab and shake them…  But for those who want to step away from the man-made (or rather films that absolutely scream “man made”) and towards the more naturalistic, Walkabout has a wonderful treat in store…  

LOVE CONQUERS ALL... RIGHT? "SAMSON AND DELILAH"

I seriously do not watch enough in the way of Australian films. Off the top of my head I can only count off about three or four. And yes, Priscilla Queen of the Desert is one of them. Samson and Delilah is a wonderful film that serves a dual purpose. I have no doubt that one of the aims of the film is to portray the plight of the aborigines in Australia today, and it is thought provoking in this sense alone. But it also asks a question. Does love really conquer all? Can love really help you overcome everything? How far can one go for one’s other half, if it’s the real thing?

Samson and Delilah are two young aborigines living in a tiny desert community in modern day Australia. Delilah and her Nan make a meagre living selling the traditional pictures they painstakingly paint every day. Samson, one of their neighbours who lives with his brother and a bunch of other young lads, is basically unemployed. Despite the impossibility of their situation and all Delilah’s resistance, slowly, love blossoms between them. This turns out to be a blessing when a tragedy that hits very close to home, pushes the young couple onto the road. Even when they’re together, living on the streets is tough and survival is a battle they have to fight daily. Their love sustains them at first. But how long can it sustain them for? Will it help Samson and Delilah to their own happy ending, or does even the greatest love have its limits?

Ok, so first of all, a heads up. Director Warwick Gibson does several things with this storyline to make the film completely original and as distant from clichés as possible. And one of those things is minimal, and I mean minimal dialogue. Now as you probably know by now, I am quite a fan of minimal dialogue. I like it because it enables the transmission of emotion in what I feel is a more sincere way. I mean, yes, with emotions you often “talk it out” or something, but the essence, the real thing you feel. You don’t necessarily “say”. This is why it’s wonderful to watch the love between Samson and Delilah develop, with mutual shows of affection and almost no words at all. It’s like those warm, cuddly moments in a relationship where words can’t quite describe what you’re feeling. And if the words aren’t good enough, why bother using them?

Then of course there is the matter of the testing of Samson and Delilah’s love. Now the beauty of this part of the storyline is that everything that happens is totally, completely, and heart-rendingly realistic. And it speaks to the ability of the director that this goes for the good things in the film and the bad. You might argue that what happens in the film is only one of many possibilities, but hey, isn’t that kinda what life is anyway? Exactly.

And the other good thing is that even though the fact that Delilah and her Nan make traditional pictures that may well have once been considered priceless to scratch out a very meagre living is undoubtedly meant as a social commentary, it is not “in your face”. It is there for you to think about. But this film is, undoubtedly about love.

In short, don’t let the lack of dialogue scare you off. This little number has SO much to offer I am positive you could see past the silence and really enjoy the film. And heck, who knows, it may well become your introduction to minimalist films. Believe me, this would not be a bad thing… J