Titles curated by Richard Kuipers
64 titles - sorted alphabetically or by year prev 1 2 next
A
Against the Grain: More Meat than Wheat feature film – 1980
A terrorist visits his family in Western Australia after detonating a bomb in Sydney on Anzac Day.
Around the World in 80 Ways feature film – 1986
Eddie and Wally Davis fake a round-the-world holiday for their senile old father.
Australia feature film – 2008
Three outsiders – an aristocrat, a stockman and a vulnerable child – are set against the malevolent forces of greedy neighbours, a world war and assimilationist policy.
B
Balibo feature film – 2009
In 1975 an Australian journalist travels to East Timor in search of five Australian journalists rumoured to have been murdered by invading Indonesian forces.
Bright Star feature film – 2009
A chronicle of the platonic love affair between poet John Keats and Fanny Brawne in early nineteenth century England.
C
Celebrity: Dominick Dunne documentary – 2008
An Australian-made documentary about celebrated crime reporter, novelist and Hollywood movie producer Dominick Dunne.
The Chain Reaction feature film – 1980
The lives of car mechanic Larry and his wife Carmel are placed in danger following an accident at a nuclear waste facility in central Australia.
Clay feature film – 1965
Nick, a killer on the run from the police, takes shelter in an isolated artists’ colony. He falls in love with Margot, a sculptress.
The Clinic feature film – 1982
Medical student Paul Armstrong spends a day at a Melbourne VD clinic.
The Coca-Cola Kid feature film – 1985
The Coca–Cola company sends its top trouble shooter to boost sales in Australia. He plans to win customers away from a much loved, old-style soft-drink maker.
D
Dead-end Drive-in feature film – 1986
In the 1990s authorities convert a drive-in into a jail for unemployed youths. Falsely imprisoned with his girlfriend, Jimmy ‘Crabs’ Rossini attempts to escape.
Dogs in Space feature film – 1986
Inner-city Melbourne, 1978. Aspiring rock singer Sam and his girlfriend Anna live in a crowded share house. The party atmosphere is shattered by tragedy.
Dr Plonk feature film – 2007
One of a tiny number of silent movies made since ‘the talkies’ arrived in the late 1920s, Rolf de Heer’s Dr Plonk is a high-spirited throwback to the days of pure visual slapstick.
E
Emerald City feature film – 1988
Successful screenwriter Colin Rogers moves from Melbourne to Sydney and becomes involved with commercial movie hustler Mike McCord.
Evil Angels feature film – 1988
Evil Angels is a highlight of ‘80s Australian cinema but did not perform as well locally as it deserved, perhaps because it presents the dark side of the easygoing ‘g’day mate’ nation.
F
Fatal Bond feature film – 1991
Fans of iconic 1960s cars will be able to see a Valiant S series take on a Citroen Goddess in the final scenes.
Father feature film – 1989
Elderly widower Joseph Mueller is accused of being a war criminal by Holocaust survivor Iya Zetnick.
G
The Golden Cage feature film – 1975
Murat and Ayhan are Turkish migrants living in Sydney. Ayhan falls in love with Sarah, but religious and cultural differences create problems.
H
Harlequin feature film – 1980
Smoothly directed in widescreen, Harlequin is one of the more polished Australian films of its day and a notch above the ordinary genre film.
The Harold Holt Mystery documentary – 1985
On 17 December 1967 Australian Prime Minister Harold Holt disappeared while swimming at Cheviot Beach, Victoria. This docudrama reconstructs Holt’s last days and examines controversial theories surrounding his death.
He Died with a Felafel in His Hand feature film – 2001
An aspiring writer moves between share households in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.
Hellfire Jack: The John Curtin Story documentary – 1985
A portrait of John Curtin, Prime Minister of Australia from 1941 to 1945.
High Tide feature film – 1987
Judy Davis makes her deeply flawed character compelling and, without her in the role, audiences may have rejected the character.
Holy Smoke feature film – 1999
Ruth Barron falls under the spell of a guru while visiting India. Her desperate family hires cult deprogrammer PJ Waters to confront Ruth.
I
Incident at Raven’s Gate feature film – 1988
Strange things are happening around the remote homestead of Raven’s Gate.
Into the Straight feature film – 1949
Australian horse breeder WJ Curzon hires British trainer Hugh Duncan and his playboy son Paul. Father and son are both attracted to JW’s daughter, June.
J
Jack and Jill: A Postscript feature film – 1970
Jack lives in a condemned house and rides with a bikie gang. Gillian, a kindergarten teacher from a middle-class family, is attracted to Jack.
Journey Out of Darkness feature film – 1967
In 1901 Constable Peterson arrives in Central Australia to arrest an Arrernte man who has committed a ritual killing.
K
King of the Coral Sea feature film – 1954
A pearler in the Torres Strait uncovers an illegal people smuggling operation.
L
The Last of the Knucklemen feature film – 1979
Near the remote town of Andamooka a group of opal miners work for Tarzan, a tough foreman known as ‘the last of the knucklemen’ for his fighting abilities.
The Life and Times of Malcolm Fraser television program – 2004
A portrait of Malcolm Fraser, Prime Minister of Australia from 1975 to 1983.
M
Mabo: An Address to the Nation television program – 1993
In a televised address to the nation, Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating outlines the government’s response to the High Court Mabo decision on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land rights.
Manganinnie feature film – 1980
Tasmania, 1830. Joanna, a little white girl, is adopted by Manganinnie, an Aborigine who has survived a slaughter.
Metal Skin feature film – 1994
Social misfit Joe is befriended by the cool and confident Dazey. Their shared passion for drag racing leads to conflict and tragedy.
Mister Prime Minister – Alfred Deakin television program – 1966
A biography of Alfred Deakin, Prime Minister of Australia from 1903 to 1904, 1905 to 1908 and from 1909 to 1910.
Mister Prime Minister – Joseph Aloysius Lyons television program – c1966
A profile of Joe Lyons, Prime Minister of Australia from 1932 to 1939.
Modern Love feature film – 2006
Like Wake in Fright, Modern Love plays upon the threatening nature of the Australian outback as an ordinary man undergoes an extraordinary personality change.
Moulin Rouge! feature film – 2001
Moulin Rouge! was a risky venture for director Baz Luhrmann but is a tour de force of imagination and appropriation.
N
Next of Kin feature film – 1982
On her mother’s death, Linda Stevens inherits an isolated retirement home. Strange events occur, leading Linda to believe an evil force dwells in the house.
Not Quite Hollywood documentary – 2008
Not Quite Hollywood is a good-humoured, highly entertaining look at the exploitation movies made in Australia in the 1970s and ’80s.
O
Oscar and Lucinda feature film – 1997
Drawn together by a passion for gambling, Anglican priest Oscar Hopkins and Australian heiress Lucinda Leplastrier agree on a wager with life-changing consequences.
P
Patrick feature film – 1978
Patrick proved that Australia had the capacity to produce exportable exploitation movies and is better regarded now than it was in 1978.
Petersen feature film – 1974
Though promoted as a lusty yarn, the frequent and fairly explicit sex scenes between the film’s unhappy characters are hardly titillating.
The Phantom Stockman feature film – 1953
A bushman known as ‘the Sundowner’ helps cattle station heiress Kim Marsden investigate the death of her father.
The Proposition feature film – 2005
Many Australian films present the outback as a dangerous place but probably only Wake in Fright can offer an outback with predatory instincts to match The Proposition.
R
Romeo + Juliet feature film – 1996
Baz Luhrmann’s radical update of Romeo + Juliet boldly shattered conventional wisdom that said Shakespeare as he wrote it would never appeal to a mass audience.
S
The Set feature film – 1969
Aspiring young designer Paul Lawrence is drawn into the hedonistic world of Sydney’s upper-class society.
Shame feature film – 1987
Perth lawyer Asta Cadell uncovers a series of sex crimes and dark secrets in a small town in Western Australia.
