Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002)
Directed by Phillip Noyce
In 1931, three Aboriginal girls escape after being plucked from their homes to be trained as domestic staff, and set off on a trek across the Outback.
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The part is played by David Gulpilil, who first appeared in the seminal Australian film Walkabout (at the time he spelled his surname Gumpilil).
"Rabbit-Proof Fence" is a well-made film all the way around, recalling the works of pioneering Australian filmmakers Peter Weir and George Miller British director Nicolas Roeg's mesmerizing 1971 film "Walkabout."
Noyce also doesn't overlook the irony of the past, in particular the assimilation of Aboriginals into white culture, illustrated by the stalwart tracker (played by Walkabout star, David Gupilil), who enforces white law and captures any kids that escape the settlement.
In many ways Rabbit-Proof Fence is similar to Nicolas Roegâs 1971 classic Walkabout â both films capitalize on the alien environment of the Aussie outlands, but Noyceâs film is grounded in the dirty history of his native country.
She then sees the return of a young girl who ran away to her boyfriend, brought in by Moodoo (David Gulpilil, "Walkabout"), an Aboriginal tracker whose daughter is also being held at the camp.
There’s also good support from David Gulpilil as the native tracker sent after the girls, which was a shrewd casting decision, because Rabbit-Proof Fence is, in many ways, Philip Noyce’s Walkabout (of which Gulpilil was the star).
The soundtrack by Peter Gabriel is -- like the one he did for "The Last Temptation of Christ" -- both haunting and majestic.
Additionally, Peter Gabriel chalks up another musical score to rival his eerie Middle Eastern-flavored The Last Temptation of Christ soundtrack, this time incorporating Aboriginal rhythms and sounds that create tension and add atmosphere.
Noyce, known more for the action thrillers "Dead Calm," "Patriot Games" and "A Clear and Present Danger" than small, dramatic gems, chose to make this film, which is adapted from the novel by Doris Pilkington and based on a true story, over his usual blockbuster fare.
Director Phillip Noyce ("Dead Calm") and his cinematographer Christopher Doyle ("In the Mood for Love") deliver a one-two punch with this and their upcoming collaboration "The Quiet American."
As directed by Phillip Noyce ("The Quiet American," "Dead Calm"), who works from novice screenwriter Christine Olsen's adaptation of "Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence" (which was written by one of the walker's subsequent daughters), this is one of those rare examples of true visual storytelling.
Based on a book by Molly's daughter, Doris Pilkington, and written for the screen by Christine Olsen, "Rabbit-Proof Fence" is the first film Noyce has directed in his home country since his 1989 nail-biter "Dead Calm."
The man who had made such iconic Australian films as Backroads (1977), Newsfront and Heatwave (1982), would eventually work with 'stars' like Harrison Ford, Denzel Washington, Sharon Stone and Val Kilmer to make a range of action-thriller genre flicks (Patriot Games [1992], Sliver [1993], The Saint [1997], The Bone Collector [1999] to name a few).
Aussie director Phillip Noyce ("The Quiet American"/"Patriot Games"/"Clear and Present Danger"/"The Bone Collector") directs a heartbreaking true story with the tagline "What if the government kidnapped your daughter?"
Otherwise, it was a gilded slide into the abyss with "Sliver," "The Saint" and his last major-studio outing, "The Bone Collector," in which Denzel Washington played a homicide detective who was also a quadriplegic principally, or so it appeared, so he couldn't get his hands on co-star Angelina Jolie.
After numerous competent big-budget Hollywood projects—The Bone Collector, Patriot Games, and Clear and Present Danger—director Phillip Noyce returns to his Australian roots to film a competent low-budget film that hopefully will prove to be a tonic.
"When I started reading the screenplay, I realized it was a very, very special story and by the end of it I was close to tears," recalls director Phillip Noyce (The Bone Collector), who returned home to Australia to make his first film there in 12 years.
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Unlike the central character in Newsfront (1978), a wonderful film about post-World War II Australia, Phillip Noyce like many other directors of his generation (Gillian Armstrong being one example) made the decision to leave his homeland for a career in Hollywood.
The film's director, Phillip Noyce, is best known for making big-budget thrillers, his biggest hits being "Patriot Games" and "Clear and Present Danger."
The man who had made such iconic Australian films as Backroads (1977), Newsfront and Heatwave (1982), would eventually work with 'stars' like Harrison Ford, Denzel Washington, Sharon Stone and Val Kilmer to make a range of action-thriller genre flicks (Patriot Games [1992], Sliver [1993], The Saint [1997], The Bone Collector [1999] to name a few).
Director Phillip Noyce (Patriot Games) returns to his native continent with this based-in-fact film that has already caused considerable controversy Down Under.
Noyce, known more for the action thrillers "Dead Calm," "Patriot Games" and "A Clear and Present Danger" than small, dramatic gems, chose to make this film, which is adapted from the novel by Doris Pilkington and based on a true story, over his usual blockbuster fare.
Director Phillip Noyce, who usually makes adventures -- among them "Patriot Games" and "Clear and Present Danger" -- is at his best in the action scenes, as when the police get close to catching the girls.
Aussie director Phillip Noyce ("The Quiet American"/"Patriot Games"/"Clear and Present Danger"/"The Bone Collector") directs a heartbreaking true story with the tagline "What if the government kidnapped your daughter?"
The film's director, Phillip Noyce, is best known for making big-budget thrillers, his biggest hits being "Patriot Games" and "Clear and Present Danger."
Noyce, whose work to date has more often focused on action/adventure (The Saint, Clear and Present Danger) has made a film of enormous emotional impact and subtlety, something I would not have expected.
But Noyce, who’s become so accustomed to operating on the dumb-and-dumber Hollywood mindset of The Saint and Clear and Present Danger, directs Rabbit-Proof Fence with the precision of an amateur heart surgeon working with a butter knife.
Director Phillip Noyce, who usually makes adventures -- among them "Patriot Games" and "Clear and Present Danger" -- is at his best in the action scenes, as when the police get close to catching the girls.
Aussie director Phillip Noyce ("The Quiet American"/"Patriot Games"/"Clear and Present Danger"/"The Bone Collector") directs a heartbreaking true story with the tagline "What if the government kidnapped your daughter?"
Australian director Phillip Noyce, who may be best known to North American movie-goers for his big-budget thrillers, Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger, presents a powerful tale of courage and the indomitable quality of the human spirit.
The man who had made such iconic Australian films as Backroads (1977), Newsfront and Heatwave (1982), would eventually work with 'stars' like Harrison Ford, Denzel Washington, Sharon Stone and Val Kilmer to make a range of action-thriller genre flicks (Patriot Games [1992], Sliver [1993], The Saint [1997], The Bone Collector [1999] to name a few).
Noyce, whose work to date has more often focused on action/adventure (The Saint, Clear and Present Danger) has made a film of enormous emotional impact and subtlety, something I would not have expected.
But Noyce, who’s become so accustomed to operating on the dumb-and-dumber Hollywood mindset of The Saint and Clear and Present Danger, directs Rabbit-Proof Fence with the precision of an amateur heart surgeon working with a butter knife.
Otherwise, it was a gilded slide into the abyss with "Sliver," "The Saint" and his last major-studio outing, "The Bone Collector," in which Denzel Washington played a homicide detective who was also a quadriplegic principally, or so it appeared, so he couldn't get his hands on co-star Angelina Jolie.
Noyce's la-la land output has varied from the accomplished (1997's "The Saint," 1992's "Patriot Games") to the truly awful (1999's "The Bone Collector"), but nothing he's done has captured the attention of the film world like his breakthrough 1989 thriller, "Dead Calm."
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The man who had made such iconic Australian films as Backroads (1977), Newsfront and Heatwave (1982), would eventually work with 'stars' like Harrison Ford, Denzel Washington, Sharon Stone and Val Kilmer to make a range of action-thriller genre flicks (Patriot Games [1992], Sliver [1993], The Saint [1997], The Bone Collector [1999] to name a few).
Otherwise, it was a gilded slide into the abyss with "Sliver," "The Saint" and his last major-studio outing, "The Bone Collector," in which Denzel Washington played a homicide detective who was also a quadriplegic principally, or so it appeared, so he couldn't get his hands on co-star Angelina Jolie.