The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith (1978)
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- R
- Theatrical Feature Running Time:
- 122 mins
Theatrical Release Information:
The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith
Based on a novel by Thomas Keneally, which was in turn inspired by actual events, this drama is a shocking indictment of the racism inflicted on the indigenous people of Australia. Jimmie (Tommy Lewis) is a half-white, half-aborigine young man raised by a Methodist minister. Feeling outcast among the aborigines, Jimmie moves to the city and gets a job working for a white family. When a white serving girl at the estate becomes pregnant, everyone is convinced that Jimmie is the father; to spare the girl's honor, Jimmie marries her and is allowed to live with her on the estate. But after the child is born, everyone realizes that the father was a white man, not Jimmie; he is still willing to accept the child and stand beside his wife, but his employers now feel that he married a white girl under false pretenses, and they bar him from the estate. Forbidden to see his wife and fired without receiving his pay, Jimmie finally explodes in a fury of violent revenge. Director Fred Schepisi's original cut of this film runs 122 minutes, though it was more widely distributed in a shortened version running 108 minutes. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Complete Cast of The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith:
Tommy Lewis also in We of the Never Never , Society
Ray Barrett also in Don's Party , In the Winter Dark , Thunderbirds Are Go , Frenchman's Farm , Visitors
Ruth Cracknell also in Joey , Lilian's Story
Don Crosby also in Newsfront
Jane Harders also in Flirting
Ray Meagher also in My Brilliant Career , Breaker Morant
Angela Punch also in Newsfront
Tim Robertson also in Holy Smoke , The Man Who Sued God , A Cry in the Dark
The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith Trivia
