Tony Barry Movies

Sam Barlow (Gary Day) is a Vietnam veteran who runs a small store that caters to surfers in this action thriller. When his best friend is murdered, Sam takes on the mobsters to avenge the death. With the help of a beautiful blonde (Gosia Dobrowolska), Sam uncovers a sex scandal involving a high-ranking government official. Also implicated are a sadistic soldier of fortune (Rod Mullinar), and a corrupt cop (Tony Barry) who tries to impede the investigation. Although the hero sells surfing-related items, he is never actually seen surfing in the feature. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

In this Australian children's adventure story, the young inventor Cody Walpole (Henry Thomas) is forced to move to the outback with his father's best friend following the death of both parents. Upon arrival, he becomes intrigued by local lore of a "donkejin," or "bunyip," a legendary, dinosaur-like creature that is said to inhabit a defunct mine that lies nearby. Soon, his girlfriend and her younger, wisecracking sister are indeed nearly attacked by something that resembles the bunyip, while rafting in the local lake. Cody begins to suspect that the bunyip is a kind of Loch Ness monster that inhabits the body of water, and he is determined to prove it. A fisherman has died in the lake under mysterious circumstances and it inspires Cody to confront the monster head-on. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

This film's all-inclusive original title was Shout!: Story of Johnny O'Keefe. Helen Reddy hosts this documentary of Australian pop star Johnny O'Keefe. Vintage film clips show the central character in glorious action. Pop songs featured herein include "Johnny B. Goode," "Great Pretender" and of course the title tune. Somehow there is enough material to film 260 minutes, and still leave the audiences begging for more! Shout was initially produced as an Australian TV miniseries. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Flawed by very uneven acting and technical problems, this black comedy about a near-rape and its consequences takes a cue from Hamlet in its resolution of unwanted villains. The story is set in 1966 in a remote town on the coast of New Zealand, a place where the unusual never happens. Yet when Sam Jamieson (Peter McCauley) catches a truck driver trying to rape Sam's pregnant Maori wife (Jillian O'Brien), he kills the trucker in the ensuing fist-fight and tells the police the death was an accident -- and they believe it. The trucker's brother later comes at Sam in revenge and is also killed. Once again, the police accept the brother's death as an accident. But another couple in the town know what happened and opt for blackmailing Sam, rather than going to the police with their story -- by all accounts, the police are not likely to believe them anyway. Sam and his wife have no choice but to suffer the blackmailers bleeding them dry -- until a jaunty Brit aristocrat (Bruce Spence) arrives on the scene and figures out a way to set things right. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

This charming love story set in the 1950s brings together an older, crafty man, a somewhat innocent young man, and a former call girl with a pure heart in an unconventional menage à trois. When the two men come into an outback town they make the acquaintance of Joycie (Lorna Lesley) who has just been fired from her job and has no place to stay. The men invite her to live with them in their shack on the outskirts of town -- and while the three are happy together, a few puritanical (and some hypocritical) townspeople start to be more and more vocal in their opposition to the trio. Their intent is to make it too hot for the threesome to even consider staying in the vicinity. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

The trial of three men in the bombing of a Hilton Hotel in Sidney in 1978 serves as the general focus for this docudrama on the nature of prejudice and justice. After the hotel bombing, authorities suggested that non-Indian members of a Hindu sect called Ananda Marga (path of bliss) had done the deed -- which killed a few people, including a policeman, but did not harm any of the Commonwealth Nations' delegates at the hotel at the time. About a year later, a paid police informant accused three members of the evangelical Hindu sect of making a bomb to kill a right-wing politico. The police arrested the men, a trial ensued with much conflicting evidence, and the trio was acquitted because of a hung jury. As noted at the end of the movie, in a second trial six months later, the men were convicted and sentenced to long prison terms. Several noted Australian actors such as Tony Barry, Max Cullen, Chris Haywood, and Richard Moir) were cast as the attorneys, defendants, and detectives in this drama directed by Esben Storm. Years later, after many appeals, the fact that the whole trial was based on manufactured evidence and that the men were innocent came to light. They were chosen as scapegoats because of their participation in an unpopular religious sect. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

This innocuous New Zealand-filmed "road" movie is buoyed by engaging performances and superb cinematography. The protagonists are young friends Gerry (Kelly Johnson) and Shirl (Claire Oberman) and their much-older travelling companion John (Tony Barry). The trio steals a car and hits the road. With the law on their trail, our heroes (and heroine) still manage to experience a steady flow of picaresque adventures. The huge supporting cast seems to be comprised of friends and relatives of the cast and crew, all of whom seem to be enjoying themselves. Luckily, their enthusiasm is contagious. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Beyond Reasonable Doubt is a true story of New Zealand justice gone awry. A married couple named Crewe is murdered, and Arthur Allen Thomas (John Hargreaves) is charged with the crime. Given a scrupulously fair trial, the innocent Thomas is found guilty on circumstantial evidence. Later on, it is discovered that zealous police inspector Hutton (David Hemmings), anxious for a conviction, planted false evidence to put the noose around Thomas' neck. Beyond Reasonable Doubt was scripted by David Yallop, whose book on the Crewe case was instrumental in gaining Thomas' release. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

As this gritty drama about a young teen's fight to overcome her past begins to unfold, flashbacks are interspersed with the present-tense story. This technique keeps viewers wondering exactly where Sam (Tracey Mann) is going: in the direction that led her to jail, or towards a normal life? After she gets out of prison, her old friends and a corrupt cop named Brady (Bill Hunter) provide formidable obstacles. They all see her as a rebellious delinquent in spite of her efforts to change. Faced with nearly insurmountable odds, Sam's struggle for her future is not going to be easily won. Mann won a 1980 Best Actress Award from the Australian Film Institute for her performance. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

In this fact-based drama, when Stephen Walls (Nathan Dawes), a four-year old, goes missing in the outback near his home in rural Australia, the population of the entire town (and several nearby towns) turns out to search for him. Unfortunately, they raise such a ruckus that they scare the little tyke, and he hides himself even more thoroughly. For four days, the townsfolk search for him, and during that time, the lad not only avoids capture, but begins to thoroughly enjoy his dangerous game of hide-and-seek. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

In Queensland, Australia in the 1920s, a rugged Irishman bucks the encroaching modern age to the detriment of himself and his family in The Irishman. Michael Craig plays Paddy Doolan, an individualistic force-of-nature who runs a team of imposing and impressive Clydesdale draught horses. With the internal combustion engine making inroads into the Australian outback, Doolan insists on ignoring the on-coming mechanical monstrosity and continues to put all his faith into his horse team. His recalcitrance tears apart his family -- consisting of his acquiescent wife Jenny (Robyn Nevin); his rebellious older son Will (Lou Brown); and supportive younger son Michael (Simon Burke). Refusing to give in to changing times, he not only ends up destroying his business and his family but himself as well. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

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, Rovi