Rabbit-Proof Fence (film)

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Rabbit-Proof Fence
Rabbit-Proof Fence movie poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Phillip Noyce
Produced by Phillip Noyce
Christine Olsen
John Winter
Screenplay by Christine Olsen
Based on Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence 
by Doris Pilkington
Starring Everlyn Sampi
Kenneth Branagh
David Gulpilil
Music by Peter Gabriel
Cinematography Christopher Doyle
Editing by Veronika Jenet
John Scott
Studio HanWay Films
Distributed by Miramax Films
Release date(s)
  • 4 February 2002 (2002-02-04)
Running time 93 minutes [1]
Country Australia
Language Aboriginal
English
Budget USD$6 million
Box office USD$16,217,411

Rabbit-Proof Fence is a 2002 Australian drama film directed by Phillip Noyce based on the book Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence by Doris Pilkington Garimara. It is based on a true story concerning the author's mother, as well as two other mixed-race Aboriginal girls, who ran away from the Moore River Native Settlement, north of Perth, Western Australia, to return to their Aboriginal families, after having been placed there in 1931. The film follows the Aboriginal girls as they walk for nine weeks along 1,500 miles (2,400 km) of the Australian rabbit-proof fence to return to their community at Jigalong, while being pursued by a white authority figure and an Aboriginal tracker.[2]

The soundtrack to the film, called Long Walk Home: Music from the Rabbit-Proof Fence, is by Peter Gabriel. British producer Jeremy Thomas, who has a long connection with Australia, was executive producer of the film, selling it internationally through his sales arm, HanWay Films.

Contents

Plot [edit]

Set in Western Australia during the 1930s, the film begins in the remote town of Jigalong where three children live with their mother and grandmother. They are the sisters, 14-year-old Molly Craig and 8-year-old Daisy Kadibil, and their 10-year-old cousin Gracie Fields. The town lies along the northern part of Australia's rabbit-proof fence, which runs for several thousand miles.

Thousands of miles away, the 'protector' of Western Australian Aborigines, A. O. Neville, signs an order to relocate the three girls to his re-education camp. The children are referred to by Neville as "half-castes", because they have one white and one aboriginal parent. Neville's reasoning is portrayed as being that the Aboriginal peoples of Australia are a danger to themselves, and that the "half-castes" must be bred out of existence. He plans to place them in a camp where they, along with all half-castes of that age range, will grow up. They will then presumably become labourers and servants to white families, regarded as a 'good' situation for them in life. Eventually if they marry, it will be to white people and thus the Aboriginal 'blood' is less and less. As such, the children are forcibly taken from Jigalong and taken to camp at the Moore River Settlement, which is in the south.

Map of the rabbit-proof fence showing the trip from Moore River to Jigalong.

Molly, Gracie, and Daisy decide to escape the camp and walk back home to Jigalong. An Aboriginal tracker, Moodoo, is called in to find them. However, the girls are well trained in disguising their tracks. They evade Moodoo several times, receiving aid from strangers in the harsh Australian country they travel. They eventually find the rabbit-proof fence, knowing that they can follow it north to Jigalong. Neville soon figures out their strategy and sends Moodoo and a local constable, Riggs, after them. Although he is an experienced tracker, Moodoo is unable to find them.

Neville spreads word that Gracie's mother is waiting for her in the town of Wiluna. The information finds its way to an Aboriginal traveller who 'helps' the girls. He tells Gracie about her mother and that they can get to Wiluna by train, causing her to break off from the group and attempt to catch a train to Wiluna. Molly and Daisy soon walk after her, finding her at a train station. They are not reunited, however, as Riggs appears and Gracie is re-captured. The betrayal is revealed by the Constable, who tells the man that he will receive a shilling for his help. Knowing they are powerless to aid her, Molly and Daisy continue on. In the end, after a harsh long journey the two sisters make it home and go into hiding in the desert with their mother and grandmother.

The epilogue of the film shows recent footage of Molly and Daisy. Molly explains that Gracie has died and that she never returned to Jigalong. Molly also tells us of her own two daughters and that the three of them were taken from Jigalong back to Moore River. She managed to escape with one daughter, Annabelle, and once again, she walked the length of the fence back home. However, when Annabelle was 3 years old, she was taken away once more, and Molly never saw her again. In closing, Molly says that she and Daisy "... are never going back to that place."

Cast [edit]

Production [edit]

The film is adapted from the book Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence, by Doris Pilkington Garimara, which is the second book of her trilogy documenting her family's stories.[3]

Release [edit]

The film stirred debate over the historical accuracy of the claims of the Stolen Generation.[4][5][6] Andrew Bolt,[7][8][9] a conservative journalist who has frequently attempted to downplay the facts of the 'Stolen Generation', criticised the portrayal of Neville in the film, arguing that he was inaccurately represented as paternalistic and racist, and the film's generally rosy portrayal of the girls' situation prior to their removal from their parents.[7] Bolt questioned the artistic portrayal in the film of the girls as prisoners in prison garb. He claimed that they would have been dressed in European clothes, as shown in contemporary photos, and tracked by concerned adults fearful for their welfare.[7] He claimed that when Molly Craig, whose journey was being told, saw the film, she stated that it was "not my story". However, she clarified that statement by saying her story still continued into her adult life and was not nicely resolved as the film's ending made it appear.[10]

Critical reception [edit]

The film has had a positive reception, enjoying a rating of 87% on Rotten Tomatoes; the consensus states "Visually beautiful and well-acted, Rabbit-Proof Fence tells a compelling true-life story."[11] On Metacritic, which uses an average of critics' reviews, the film has an 80/100, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[12]

David Stratton of SBS awarded the film four stars out of five, commenting that Rabbit-Proof Fence is a "bold and timely film about the stolen generations."[13]

Box office [edit]

Rabbit-Proof Fence grossed US$3,756,418 in Australia, and $6,199,600 in the United States. Worldwide, it grossed $16,217,411.[14][15]

Accolades [edit]

Wins
 This section may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. The specific problem is: format into proper prose and remove less noteworthy awards and unsourcable ones. Please help improve this section if you can. (April 2010)
2001 - Queensland Premier's Literary Awards.:[16] Film Script — the Pacific Film and Television Commission Award (Christine Olsen)[17]
2002 - Australian Film Institute Awards[18]
2002 - Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards[19]
  • Best Director (Phillip Noyce)
  • Best Screenplay — Adapted (Christine Olsen)
2002 - Inside Film Awards[20]
2002 - New South Wales Premier's History Awards:[21] shortlisted for The Premier's Young People's History Prize (Christine Olsen and Phillip Noyce)
2002 (USA) - Aspen Filmfest:[22] Audience Award, Audience Favourite Feature[23] (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (Switzerland) - Castellinaria International Festival of Young Cinema,[24]
  • ASPI Award (Phillip Noyce)
  • Golden Castle (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (USA) - The 2002 Starz Encore Denver International Film Festival,:[25] People's Choice Award: Best Feature-Length Fiction Film (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (South Africa) - Durban International Film Festival:[26] Audience Award (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (UK) - Edinburgh International Film Festival:[27] Audience Award (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (UK) - Leeds International Film Festival:[28] Audience Award (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (USA) - National Board of Review Awards 2002[29]
  • Freedom of Expression Award
  • Best Director (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (USA) - San Francisco Film Critics Circle[30]
  • Special Citation (Phillip Noyce, also for The Quiet American (2002))
  • Audience Award: Best Foreign Film (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (Spain) - Valladolid International Film Festival:[31] Audience Award: Feature Film (Phillip Noyce)
2003 (UK) - London Critics Circle Film Awards (ALFS):[32] Director of the Year (Phillip Noyce, also for The Quiet American (2002))
2003 (Brazil) - São Paulo International Film Festival:[33] Audience Award: Best Foreign Film (Phillip Noyce)
Nominations
2002 (Australia) - Australian Film Institute Nominations[34]
  • Best Actor in a Supporting Role (David Gulpilil)
  • Best Cinematography (Christopher Doyle)
  • Best Costume Design (Roger Ford)
  • Best Direction (Phillip Noyce)
  • Best Editing (Veronika Jenet, John Scott)
  • Best Production Design (Roger Ford)
  • Best Screenplay Adapted from Another Source (Christine Olsen)
2002 (Australia) - Film Critics Circle of Australia Nominations[19] Australia
2002 (Poland) - Camerimage - 2002 International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography:[35] Golden Frog (Christopher Doyle)
2002 (USA) - Golden Trailer Award Nominations:[36] Golden Trailer: Best Independent
2003 (USA) - Golden Globe Nominations:[37] Golden Globe: Best Original Score — Motion Picture (Peter Gabriel)
2003 (USA) - Motion Picture Sound Editors Nomination:[38] Golden Reel Award: Best Sound Editing in Foreign Features (Juhn Penders, Craig Carter, Steve Burgess, Ricky Edwards, Andrew Plain)
2003 (USA) - Political Film Society Awards[39]
  • Exposé
  • Human Rights
2003 (USA) - Young Artist Awards[40]
  • Best Performance in a Feature Film — Supporting Young Actress (Everlyn Sampi)
  • Best Performance in a Feature Film — Young Actress Age Ten or Under (Tianna Sansbury)

See also [edit]

Portal icon Film portal

References [edit]

  1. ^ "Rabbit-Proof Fence (PG)". British Board of Film Classification. 24 July 2002. Retrieved 2 January 2012. 
  2. ^ "Rabbit-Proof Fence Title Details". National Film and Sound Archive. Retrieved 28 July 2007. 
  3. ^ Brewster, Anne (2007). "The Stolen Generations: Rites of Passage: Doris Pilkington interviewed by Anne Brewster (22 January 2005)". The Journal of Commonwealth Literature 42 (1): 143–159. doi:10.1177/0021989407075735. 
  4. ^ Fickling, David (25 October 2002). "Film: The stolen ones". The Guardian (London). 
  5. ^ http://aso.gov.au/titles/features/rabbit-proof-fence/notes/
  6. ^ Peter Howson and Des Moore, A Rabbit-proof Fence Full of Holes, The Bennelong Society, originally published in The Australian, 11 March 2002
  7. ^ a b c "Rabbit-proof myths". bolta@heraldsun.com.au. Retrieved 10 May 2011. 
  8. ^ "Australian Journalist Questions ‘Stolen Generation’, by Ian S. McIntosh". European Network for Indigenous Australian Rights. Archived from the original on 7 June 2004. Retrieved 10 May 2011. 
  9. ^ Andrew Bolt. "Take down this Rabbit-Proof Fence". Herald Sun. 
  10. ^ "film commentary by director Phillip Noyce". 
  11. ^ Rabbit-Proof Fence at Rotten Tomatoes
  12. ^ Rabbit-Proof Fence at Metacritic
  13. ^ Stratton, David. "Rabbit-Proof Fence (review)". SBS. Retrieved 14 February 2013. 
  14. ^ "Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002) - International Box Office Results". Box Office Mojo. 2 December 2007. Retrieved 16 May 2010. 
  15. ^ "Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002)". Box Office Mojo. 2 December 2007. Retrieved 16 May 2010. 
  16. ^ "Premier's Literary Awards website". 29 June 2007. 
  17. ^ "Queensland Premier's Literary Awards". 26 June, June. 
  18. ^ "Australian Film Institute website". 29 June 2007. 
  19. ^ a b "Film Critics Circle of Australia website". 29 June 2007. 
  20. ^ "Lexus Inside Film Awards website". 29 June 2007. 
  21. ^ "NSW Premier's History Awards 2002". NSW Ministry for the Arts. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 17 July 2007. 
  22. ^ "Aspen Film website". 28 June 2007. 
  23. ^ "2002 Aspen Film Awards". 29 June 2007. 
  24. ^ "Castellinaria International Festival of Young Cinema". 29 June 2007. 
  25. ^ "Denver International Film website". 29 June 2007. 
  26. ^ "Durban International Film Festival website". 29 June 2007. 
  27. ^ "Edinburg International Film Festival website". 29 June 2007. 
  28. ^ "Leeds International Film Festival website". 29 June 2007. 
  29. ^ "The National Board of Review, USA website". 29 June 2007. 
  30. ^ "San Francisco Film Critics Circle website". 29 June 2007. 
  31. ^ "Valladolid International Film Festival website". 29 June 2007. 
  32. ^ "The Critics Circle". 29 June 2007. 
  33. ^ "São Paulo International Film Festival website". 29 June 2007. 
  34. ^ "Australian Film Institute website". 29 June 2007. 
  35. ^ "Camerimage website". 29 June 2007. 
  36. ^ "Golden Trailer Awards website". 29 June 2007. 
  37. ^ "Golden Globe Awards website". 29 June 2007. 
  38. ^ "Motion Picture Sound Editor website". 29 June 2007. 
  39. ^ "Political Film Society website". 29 June 2007. Archived from the original on 21 August 2007. 
  40. ^ "Young Artists Award website". 29 June 2007. 

External links [edit]

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