Ray Barrett Movies
Australian actor Ray Barrett was one of the more popular leading men on British television in the 1960s; he was on the series The Troubleshooters from 1965-1971 and did voices on the Gerry Anderson marionette series Stingray and Thunderbirds. It was only in the decades that followed that he emerged to big-screen stardom in his native country. Born in Brisbane in 1927, he was fascinated by radio -- then a marvelous new entertainment medium -- and won an on-air talent competition in 1939. At the age of 16, Barrett went to work as an announcer, and later did interviews and even sang on the air. Eventually, he started doing plays, and was put under contract to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, through which he did everything from Shakespeare to tales of Tarzan. He made the jump to television in the early '50s, including an appearance on the adventure series Long John Silver (1955), starring Robert Newton. Barrett also worked with John Bluthal (A Hard Day's Night, Help!) on a comedy series called The Idiot Weekly, and with Spike Milligan on a 1958 television special. In 1959, Barrett moved to England and, over the next few years, appeared in a string of series, including Educating Archie, Armchair Mystery Theatre, Emergency Ward 10, Man of the World, First Night, Harpers West One, Z Cars, Doctor Who, The Saint, and The Avengers. He also made a lasting impression as a voice artist on Gerry and Sylvia Anderson's series Stingray as the voice of Commander Sam Shore (heard at the beginning of every episode's credit sequence) as well as several other characters. He also did the voice of John Tracy (in addition to numerous other characters) in the Anderson series Thunderbirds and the movie adaptation Thunderbirds Are Go!Barrett's film career began in 1960 with a prominent appearance in the drama The Sundowners, starring Robert Mitchum. His other movies during this period included the Val Guest mystery film Jigsaw (1961) and a starring role in the Hammer Films chiller The Reptile (1966). Inn of the Frightened People (1971) was a good showcase for his talents, but it was in the mid-'70s (when he returned to Australia) that he finally became a star. He was cast by Bruce Beresford in a major role in Don's Party (1976), which was widely seen around the world, and then Fred Schepisi used him in a leading role as a racist constable in The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith (1978). That portrayal earned Barrett the Australian Film Institute award for Best Supporting Actor (the Aussie equivalent of an Oscar). His performance in Goodbye Paradise (1982) won him the Best Actor Award and he enjoyed starring roles right into the '90s. In the years since, Barrett played major supporting and character roles in such pictures as Blood Oath (1991) and In the Winter Dark (1998). He primarily did TV work in the early 2000s. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi
Santa's black-sheep brother gets a much-needed shot at redemption in this holiday comedy reuniting actor Vince Vaughn and director David Dobkin (Clay Pigeons, Wedding Crashers). It's not easy being the brother of a benevolent and beloved saint, and no one knows that better than Fred Claus (Vaughn). After struggling for years to live up to the example set by his younger sibling Nicholas (Paul Giamatti), Fred has finally given up. These days Fred is working as a repo man taken to stealing the items he repossesses, and his shady tactics have just landed him in jail. While Mrs. Claus vehemently insists that Fred fend for himself, Nicholas refuses to sit idly by as his brother rots in jail and agrees to set bail if Fred will repay the debt by coming to the North Pole and help make toys for the upcoming Christmas season. But Fred isn't nearly as productive as your average elf, and he's got quite an attitude to boot. With Christmas fast approaching and Fred threatening to sideline Nicholas' entire finely tuned operation, the brother that always struggled to get out from under his sibling's substantial shadow finds out just how far the patience of a saint can be pushed before jolly old Santa reaches his breaking point. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Vince Vaughn, Paul Giamatti, (more)
The greatest monster hunter of them all has his work cut out for him as he tracks down three deadly foes in this action-adventure saga. Gabriel Van Helsing (Hugh Jackman) is a man who has dedicated his life to battling evil forces who exist outside the bounds of nature; Van Helsing's work has not always made him friends, and a false accusation of murder still trails him. But when he's summoned to Transylvania at the behest of Anna Valerious (Kate Beckinsale), whose family has been fighting supernatural beings for generations, Van Helsing wastes no time answering her call. There, Van Helsing discovers that the undying vampire Count Dracula (Richard Roxburgh) has put a misshapen creature named Igor (Kevin J. O'Connor) under his spell, and, in turn, has forged an alliance with a hideous monster (Shuler Hensley) who was created by the misguided Dr. Victor Frankenstein (Samuel West). Adding to Anna's burden is her brother, Velkan (Will Kemp), a lycanthrope who becomes a bloodthirsty wolf under the light of the full moon. Van Helsing also co-stars Elena Anaya, Silvia Colloca, and Josie Maran as Dracula's vampire brides. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Hugh Jackman, Kate Beckinsale, (more)
Venerable British actress Susannah York and up-and-coming star Radha Mitchell head up the cast of this Australian psychological thriller. Both actresses play the character of Carolyn at different stages of her life; bookended with scenes of the elder Carolyn (York) recalling her attempt to sail around the world, the bulk of the film involves the terror-stricken voyage itself. Only in her twenties, the young Carolyn (Mitchell) is filled with hope and fear for her daring solo journey, but once at sea, isolation and solitude begin to take their toll. Soon, Carolyn is encountering people and situations from her past, sometimes with violent, terrifying consequences. When she begins to notice physical evidence of her nightmarish visitors, Carolyn really begins to lose it. ~ Michael Hastings, Rovi
- Starring:
- Radha Mitchell, Susannah York, (more)
- 2002
Based on a true story, the Australian feelgood comedy Dalkeith takes place in a tranquil retirement home. The elderly residents are bored to tears until they get a thoroughbred greyhound as a pet. The old folks name it Dalkeith, after the name of their home, and soon discover the dog's talent for running. When they enter her in the greyhound dog races, Dalkeith actually starts winning. The residents make bets on the dog's races and even go watch the action at the race track, providing them with a renewed sense of livelihood. The retirement home board of trustees object to the situation and try to put a stop to it, until resident Tarquin (Ray Barrett) revives his past in the legal profession and settles the matter in court. Also starring veteran Australian actors Gus Mercurio, Esme Melville, and Alan Hopgood. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
- Starring:
- Ray Barrett, Gus Mercurio, (more)
James Bogle directed this Australian psychological thriller adapted (by Bogle and Peter Rasmussen) from the novel by Tim Winton. Living on their farm for 30 years, Maurice (Ray Barrett) and Ida Stubbs (Brenda Blethyn) have never recovered from the loss of their child, smothered by a cat. Elsewhere in the valley are pregnant, spaced-out Ronnie (Miranda Otto), abandoned by her lover, and lonely misfit Laurie (Richard Roxburgh), a fan of Jim Reeves recordings. Fear brings these four together when an unknown predator starts slaughtering local livestock. Shown at the Sydney Film Festival (Opening Night). ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi
- Starring:
- Brenda Blethyn, Ray Barrett, (more)
A runaway Japanese bride finds herself alone in Sydney, Australia when her lover fails to show up to save her from her husband, and she ends up on an off-road adventure with a handsome getaway driver while fleeing gangsters, cops from two countries and her murderously humiliated spouse. The whole mess begins when Midori (Youki Kudoh) engineers her own kidnapping to avoid her honeymoon night with her hyper-tense businessman husband Yukio (Kenji Isomura). When he notices Midori's absence, Yukio panics. Local policemen Bishop and Moffat are assigned the case and it is while talking to Yukio and the staff that they learn the truth. When the Japanese press finds out about Yukio's plight, they merrily proceed to crucify him in the headlines, making him a laughingstock. Meanwhile, Midori, after getting jilted, goes to a bank to exchange some money and is caught in the midst of an armed bankrobbery masterminded by Afghani hoodlums Mahood (Robert Mammone) and his brother Gullbuddin. The two are about to shoot the terrified Midori when their getaway driver Colin (Russell Crowe) intervenes. Gullbuddin is accidentally killed during the scuffle and Colin hits the highway with Midori. With the aforementioned crowd in hot pursuit, the two fugitives head for a farm in the boonies where Colin's elderly, embittered father lives in almost comical isolation. Along the way, the two encounter several memorable characters. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Russell Crowe, Youki Kudoh, (more)
It begins as a seemingly cut and dried case of sexual harassment, but the more the conciliator assigned to the case investigates, the more obvious it becomes that either or both side is lying. Based on the premise that survival and success in the '90s is largely based on one's ability to lie brilliantly, the Australian drama follows the ins and outs of a very complex case that begins when recently fired Susy Connor files a formal complaint with the Anti-Discrimination Tribunal about an alleged incident in which her employer Gary Fitzgerald grabbed her breasts, whispered suggestive things in her ear and showed her his genitals while working late one night. The married Fitzgerald calls her a liar. Marion is called in to mediate and find the truth. Both parties have creditable character witnesses, and at the same time, both have gaping holes in their stories. Susy's witness is her sister Katie, whom she claims she told all about the upsetting incident. Unfortunately, Susy never said a word and still expects Katie to lie. On the other hand, Gary's witness Vince, his partner, knows that his friend is a notorious womanizer and strongly suspects that Susy tells the truth. Susy, herself, with her sexy dressing, provocative ways and her openness about an active sex-life has the advantage of being a woman as Gary is famed for his macho posturing around the office (a trait that in the hyper-sensitive '90s automatically makes him guilty of lechery). ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Anthony LaPaglia, Gia Carides, (more)
- 1996
- R
A man tries to win the hand of the love of his life -- which is an uphill battle, since she's about to get married -- in this romantic comedy from Australia. Seventeen-year-old Stephen (Simon Bossell) first sees Melissa (Saffron Burrows) across the room at a party, and from that moment on, he's hopelessly in love with her. However, as he's crossing the room to introduce himself, who should get there first but his fraternal twin brother Rick (Alden Young). While Stephen is the brighter of the two, Rick is more attractive and outgoing, and Stephen quickly realizes that he doesn't stand a chance with Melissa if Rick is his competition. Ten years later, Stephen is doing quite well as a stockbroker, though his love life remains a disaster, while Rick is the manager of the Hotel de Love, a cheesy honeymoon resort complete with heart-shaped bathtubs for two and artificial indoor waterfalls. While Stephen is paying his brother a visit at the hotel, who should check in but Melissa, with her bookish fiancé Norman (Peter O'Brien) in tow. While Melissa is surprised to see her former flame Rick, she has no idea that Stephen still carries a torch for her after all these years. Stephen tries to win Melissa away from Norman, which given his romantic ineptitude is no easy task; he seeks advice from Alison (Pippa Grandison), Rick's girlfriend, who works as a fortune teller at the hotel, though the results are not what anyone expected. Meanwhile, Stephen and Rick's quarrelsome parents, Jack and Edith (Ray Barrett and Julia Blake), have come to the hotel for a second honeymoon, and they hope to patch up their marriage. Hotel de Love was the feature debut for writer/director Craig Rosenberg. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Simon Bossell, Aden Young, (more)
- 1995
This Australian period comedy set at the turn-of-the-century, is based on the anecdotal books of Steele Rudd (the pen name for author Arthur Hoey) that described life on a rural "selection" (a small farm) in Queensland. Like the original written tales, the film is anecdotal and chronicles events from the lives of the Rudd family. The story begins when the parents and their five grown children first arrive at their desolate selection. Their lives are as barren as the land as they struggle to work. The result of their toil is a meager harvest, which they try to sell in a depressed market. Despite their constant hard work and few rewards, the family is a lively bunch and despite their difficulties are able to stay together through thick and thin. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1995
- R
This Australian drama is an adaptation of Hannie Rayson's award-winning play. It is the tale of the three Moynihan sisters, Hilary, a widow who lives in the family "hotel" with their father and her teenage son; Pippa, who lives in New York; and Meg, who lives in London. After a long absence, the three gather in their familial home in Sorrento, a coastal town near Melbourne, for their father's funeral. Many of the town's most prominent citizens are terribly impressed that Meg has just published an award-winning book that is actually a thinly veiled vicious attack on the town, its people, and her family. It is not a happy reunion, as old hurts and rivalries amongst the sisters immediately begin resurfacing. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1993
The Bells live on a sheep station in the Australian outback, struggling from year to year just to get by. In this story, they have suffered for a number of years from one of Australia's periodic droughts, and are practically the last holdouts in their part of the country to remain on the land. Everyone else has been forced to abandon their farms and move into the city. Despite that, their sheep are doing fairly well, and they have hopes that they can survive the drought. Just then, the government lowers its price supports for wool, and they can't get enough at shearing time to make even a reasonable payment on their debts. They are forced to kill off their sheep, sell their land, and move in with relatives in Sydney. The Bell's daughter Mathilda (Amy Terelinck), who is heartbroken at all these events and who desperately misses her half-wild (dingo) dog and misses the outdoors, runs away. Though the family is able to "get by" in the city, it becomes clear that from their perpsective they are not living - only surviving. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Susan Lyons
In 1945, a tribunal was held to investigate atrocities committed by the Japanese upon Australian soldiers during World War II. At an internment camp, 1100 Australian soldiers were tortured and killed by the Japanese, with only 300 survivors. This horrible event was not known until a terrible discovery of decapitated corpses was made at a grisly site on Ambon Island in Indonesia after the war. Stephen Wallace directed this courtroom drama based on the incident and follows the intrepid investigator who uncovers the truth behind the missing Australian soldiers. Bryan Brown plays Captain Cooper, the prosecutor of the case, in which 91 Japanese officers and soldiers are accused of murdering the Australian prisoners-of-war. The chief defendants are camp commander Takahashi (George Takei) and Captain Ikeuchi (Tetsu Watanabe). Takahashi denies knowing anything about the atrocities, as does Ikeuchi. Nevertheless, Cooper presses on to undercover the truth. But standing in his way is the American delegation, led by Major Beckett (Terry O'Quinn). They don't want a case to go forward that would reflect badly on the Japanese high command, since General MacArthur wants to reinstate many of the Japanese officers in a new postwar Japanese order. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bryan Brown, George Takei, (more)
- 1990
The three-part British-Australian TV production The Paper Man could be described as the miniseries equivalent of Citizen Kane. John Bach headed the huge cast as Philip Cromwell, a canny Australian entrepreneur who through "ways of his own" became his country's most powerful media mogul. Any resemblance between Cromwell and the real-life Rupert Murdoch was, of course, purely coincidental. Telecast in 1990, The Paper Man was seen in the United Kingdom via Granada Television, and in Australia over that continent's ABC network. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- John Bach, Oliver Tobias, (more)
- 1990
In this Australian drama, a group of female friends return from locations around the world to help another friend have her child. While there, they reminisce and catch up on their current lives. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Deborra-Lee Furness, Frank Whitten, (more)
- 1988
This Australian-made sci-fi tale is about a surfer who stops in for a bite to eat at a 1940s-type diner. Eventually he realizes that it is not a diner at all -- it is a spaceship disguised as one, and the "owners" of the diner are aliens. ~ Brian Gusse, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bruno Lawrence, Nique Needles, (more)
- 1987
A naive real-estate agent is offered incredible wealth by an introverted millionaire, but only if he agrees to kill someone. ~ John Bush, Rovi
- Starring:
- John Doyle, Nicola Bartlett, (more)
Set in contemporary Australia, this hallucinatory drama is predicated on time displacement. University student Jackie Grenville (Tracey Tainsh), motoring through the rural region, suddenly finds herself in 1944. She witnesses a horrible murder, then is zapped back to the present. Retracing her steps, Jackie and her boyfriend Barry Norden (David Reyne) try to solve the mystery. They unearth an unexpected fortune--and a highly expected (to the audience, at any rate) crazed killer. Adding to the film's catalog of horror cliches is the local constabulary, who refuse to believe Jackie's story. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Tracey Tanish, David Reyne, (more)
- 1985
Empty Beach brings Australian novelist Peter Corris' detective hero Cliff Hardy to the big screen. F/X star Bryan Brown plays Hardy, who this time around is hired to confirm or disprove the reported death of a millionaire. Hardy confers with journalist Brian Henneberry (Clifford Tate), who has some potentially explosive evidence -- and who, inevitably, is murdered before he can talk. The trail of evidence runs hot and cold, thanks to a gaggle of suspects and hangers-on who aren't revealing everything that they know. Co-starring in Empty Beach is Anna Maria Monticelli, aka Anna Jemison. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bryan Brown, Anna Maria Monticelli, (more)
This WW II musical is set in Australia and chronicles the exploits of a nightclub singer and the young Marine who loves her. She works in a Quonset hut turned into a saloon and helps stage shows for battle-weary troops returning from the South Seas. After one performance she holds a small party in her apartment and there meets the Marine sergeant who has just sailed in from Guadalcanal. Although she is married and awaiting the return of her husband, who is also at war, he decides to pursue her. Later she learns that her husband has been killed. Soon after, the Marine confesses that he can no longer handle the violence and has gone AWOL. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Matt Dillon, Debbie Byrne, (more)
- 1985
In this saga of family stress and antagonisms, an 80-year-old grandfather is brought out of his retirement home to celebrate his birthday with his family in their nearly 100-year-old country house and farm. Unknown to the grandfather, his son Geoffrey has made the decision to sell everything because it has become nearly impossible to make a living off the land. Family members range from Uncle Edward (Norman Kaye) a tippling priest, to Geoffrey's daughter Clare (Alyson Best) and some siblings and friends who are at least partially dysfunctional. With this group along to celebrate his birthday, the grandfather may want to make it back to the peace and quiet of his retirement home as quickly as he can. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bill Kerr
In a slightly padded but well-acted and relevant drama, an Australian mining company and a group of aboriginals go to court to settle a dispute over sacred land that the company wants to mine. When the Ayers Mining Company sets out to begin construction of its mine with bulldozers and earth-movers, the Aboriginals physically block the work because the site is exactly where the green ants will gather to dream (a 40,000-year-old legend) and it cannot be disturbed. The company tries the usual means of getting their way -- through bribes and arguments -- but nothing budges the men who came to defend the land. Once in court, it is quickly apparent that tribal laws and customs and beliefs are very different than Western laws -- and how the issue will be resolved is sticky indeed. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bruce Spence, Wandjuk Marika, (more)
- 1984
The political battles waged by Australian Prime Minister John Curtin against Franklin Roosevelt, Winston Churchill and others during the Second World War are the subject of this docudrama. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi
- 1983
When a pay cut sends Australian dock workers on strike, a group of Italian immigrants are hired to take their place, causing much resentment and hatred on both sides. However, when an Italian woman and an Australian man start up a passionate affair, they discover that they must work to preserve their relationship and stay true to their fellow countrymen. ~ Iotis Erlewine, Rovi
Building is Howard's passion, and he is so absorbed in his plans to build an elaborate resort in the Blue Mountains of Australia that he ignores certain obvious signals that his business partner is not entirely on the up-and-up. After a brush fire destroys the resort, an insurance investigator comes nosing around, whom Howard's partner deals with in a drastic manner. By the time Lloyds of London's senior investigator George Engels (James Mason in one of his last roles) arrives on the scene, Howard (Tom Skerritt) is anxious to set things to rights. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Tom Skerritt, Ian Gilmour, (more)
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