John Waters Movies

The Australian Eliza Fraser tries for the wig-and-bodice bawdiness of Tom Jones. The title character, played by Susannah York, is an 18th century lass who is shipwrecked together with Trevor Howard on a remote Australian island. Her lively exploits among the refugees help to make Eliza famous--or rather, notorious--throughout the British empire. Once rescued, Eliza earns her keep at county fairs by regaling audiences with her own tales of her adventures. Tim Burstall both wrote and directed Eliza Fraser from an original screenplay by David Williamson. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This Australian fox-and-hounds melodrama concerns an intensive manhunt for a suspected murderer. Polish immigrant Mark Gaweda is accused of killing a rancher's wife. Heading the posse is police officer Wyn Roberts, who hopes that by catching Gaweda he'll be able to live down an earlier tragedy caused by his negligence. John Waters, one of Roberts' men, begins to believe in Gawada's innocence, and ends up defending the fugitive against his accusers. Weekend of Shadows was based on a novel by Hugh Atkinson. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The suffocating repressiveness of the Victorian era is superbly realized by director Bruce Beresford in The Getting of Wisdom. Thirteen-year-old Laura (Susannah Fowle), an incorrigible free spirit from the Australian outback, is enrolled in a prestigious girl's boarding school. The indoctrination process is a rough one, and Laura very nearly loses her individuality and sense of self-worth. When she does mature, however, it is on her terms, and not the school's. Intriguingly, The Getting of Wisdom is based on the reminiscences of a 19th-century female writer who used the pen name of Henry Handel Richardson. Despite its somber dramatic overtones, the film contains moments of uninhibited humor, a trademark of director Beresford. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A jaded filmmaker returns to Australia in search of self. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide

Force Z is a crack Australian military corps during World War II. When a plane carrying a high-profile Japanese defector crash-lands somewhere in the South Pacific, it's up to Force Z to find it. Complicating matters is a traitor in the good guys' midst. John Philip Law heads the cast of Attack Force Z, but some video companies have bestowed top billing upon Mel Gibson, originally listed 3rd in the cast. The film also features an early leading peformance by Sam Neill. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

All the Rivers Run is a four-part miniseries set in the Australia of the early 1900s. Sigrid Thornton stars as Philadelphia Gordon, an English artist who undertakes a tragic move to Australia with her family. During their voyage to the new continent, a shipwreck occurs, killing all but Philadelphia and one of the ship's crewmen. She is then shuttled off to live with her aunt and uncle on their farm, and uses her inheritance to fund a paddleship business with the crewman from the vessel who saved her life. Philadelphia's life is forever altered when she meets handsome frontier paddleboat skipper Brenton Edwards (the Australian actor John Waters -- not to be confused with the iconoclastic American director of the same name). Our heroine marries Edwards, but the union begets trouble when their paddlesteamer catches fire, destroying the craft altogether and forcing Brenton to take another job. Later, an accident that renders Brenton lame forces Philadelphia to work hard and support the couple; she then decides to rebuild the vessel while doubling up her efforts as a painter. Scripted by George Miller (the director of Man from Snowy River), All the Rivers Run was released in the U.S. over the HBO Cable service; it first aired January 15 through 18, 1984. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The "three" in the Australian Three's Trouble are a harried housewife (Jackie Weaver), her smug husband (John Waters), and her handsome male babysitter (Steven Vidler). To the husband, the fact that the sitter is better looking than he is does not bother him all that much. What does gall him is that the sitter is so gosh-darned knowledgeable and efficient. The husband is forced to reassess his own value in the family unit. Three's Trouble screenwriter David Williamson (The Year of Living Dangerously, Phar Lap) wisely treats his characters warmly as human beings rather than stereotypical cogs in a farcical wheel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this melodramatic made-for-television romance, a Singapore financier falls in love with the daughter of a powerful smuggler. The film is a remake of a popular "B" movie from the '30s. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Sometimes it just gets to be too much for a man. One day, successful mining engineer Martin Brown packs it in, leaving behind his wife and family and heading for a rural idyll in the hinterlands. Despite his best efforts to escape from the hurly-burly of competitive life, he must fend off the efforts of his greedy former boss to acquire the lush horse-farming estate he has wound up on. Curiously, his abandoned wife doesn't put up much of a fuss over his absence but seems most concerned about his rejection of the prevailing culture's values. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Not to be confused with the Hong Kong-filmed gangster thriller of the same name, the Philippine-produced True Colors is set during World War II. Noni Hazelhurst stars as a Frenchwoman who is appalled by the Nazi takeover of her village. Running up against indifference and collaboration, Noni struggles to rally her neighbors against the invaders. In lieu of a huge budget, director Pina Amenta concentrates on the personal impact of the war, and succeeds admirably. At 160 minutes, however, True Colors could use just a little snip here or there. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this stylish and smart 1988 thriller, reporter Tom Stewart accidentally falls on the wrong side (not that he's ever on the right side) of the law during a psychotic killer's spree of murders. Stewart's no angel having already stolen money from a car wreck. At the center of the killings is Morris Martin, a schoolteacher on a rampage supposedly searching for his "dead" wife. As Martin's killings become progressively more violent and heat from the police increases, Stewart is forced to hunt Martin down himself, teaming up with crooked cop Ray Birch to do so. Stewart and Birch eventually corner Martin, but have no idea the mystery they'll uncover when they find him. ~ Brian Whitener, All Movie Guide

What happens when baby-boom rock 'n rollers, having had their fleeting moment of fame and notoriety, grow up, get other jobs, and have children of their own? For one thing, if this movie is to be believed, they envy their children's musical abilities and, when the youngsters get involved in their own version of rebel-music, they re-create the famed "generation gap" all over again. Johnny (played by Australian actor John Waters) was a member of a 1960s band called the Chosen Ones and enjoyed the famed trinity of that era: sex, drugs and rock 'n roll. Now the middle-aged man is bored with his "straight" job and wants to see if he can't start a revival of his band's popularity, but his wife wants his career change to be more practical and suggests that they invest in a restaurant. At the same time, Johnny's much more talented son Paul is making waves in his own band. One highlight of this film is the surprisingly skillful music-making of the performers, none of them music pros. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide