John Fernside Movies
- 1951
Bob Chitty stars as infamous Australian outlaw Ned Kelly in The Glenrowan Affair. The film recounts the 19th-century exploits of the Kelly gang, leading inexorably to his capture and execution. Though the story must have been a familiar one for Australian audiences, the film performed quite well "down under." American filmgoers and critics were less impressed, citing the overripe performances by all concerned. Still, the Glenrowan Affair is an interesting slice of history, and might prove an intriguing companion piece with the Mick Jagger vehicle of the 1970s dealing with the same subject. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1949
Released in the U.S. as Massacre Hill, the Australian Eureka Stockade was one of that country's biggest and most expensive postwar productions (it was nearly two years in the making!) Set during the 19th-century Australian gold rush, the film top-bills Chips Rafferty as boisterous prospector Peter Lallor. The gold bonanza is threatened by the arrival of claim-jumpers, usurpers and government bean-counters. At first, the prospectors intend to use random mob violence to ward off the invaders, but Lallor organizes the group into a strong, united front, as willing to mediate as to bust heads. Future star Peter Finch is eighth-billed as "Humffray." Eureka Stockade was remade years later as a TV miniseries. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Chips Rafferty, Gordon Jackson, (more)
Bush Christmas can be described as an Australian western, albeit with a juvenile slant (indeed, it was produced on behalf of J. Arthur Rank's Children's Cinema Club). Set in the mountains of New South Wales, the story concerns a family of Australian kids who are heading homeward for the Christmas holidays. En route, they unwittingly provide the information which enables a band of thieves to steal their father's horses. Deciding to set things right on their own, the children head into the Blue Mountains to track down the thieves, relying on Aborginal survival skills to keep themselves going. The nominal star is the popular Chips Rafferty, playing a misleading likeable horse rustler. Though initially released in England in June of 1947, Bush Christmas has since become a TV Yuletide perennial throughout the English-speaking world. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Chips Rafferty, John Fernside, (more)
- 1946
Australian action star Chips Rafferty heads the cast of The Overlanders. The time is World War II, and we know one thing for sure: Rafferty is no "Hud." When ordered to kill 1000 head of cattle rather than risk losing them to the Japanese, Rafferty herds the beef-on-hoof across the Australian continent. The 2000-mile cattle drive costs dearly in terms of personal losses to Rafferty and his fellow drovers, but in the end their sacrifices are worth it. The Overlanders is based on a true story, and was specifically selected for adaptation to film as a congratulatory morale-booster for postwar Australian audiences. The film was the first non-British film to be produced by Michael Balcon's Ealing Studio. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Chips Rafferty, John Nugent Hayward, (more)
- 1936
British actor Dennis Hoey, best known for his appearances as the slow-witted Inspector Lestrade in the Sherlock Holmes films, is the athletic, take-charge leading man in the Australian Uncivilised. The story is set in motion when lady novelist Beatrice Lynn (Margot Rhys) journeys into the Outback in search of Mara (Hoey), a white man who has made his home with an Aborigine tribe. She arrives at her destination to discover that Mara is a virtual god in his dominion, ruling the tribesmen with a firm but benevolent hand. For most of the film, Dennis Hoey delivers his dialogue in an Aboriginal language, briefly reverting to English when he sings a song (and quite well at that). Margot Rhys' brief nude-swimming sequence was publicized for all it was worth when Uncivilised was released in the U.S. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Dennis Hoey, Marcelle Marney, (more)
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