Titles curated by Richard Kuipers
64 titles - sorted alphabetically or by year prev 1 2 next
1940s
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.
1950s
The Phantom Stockman feature film – 1953
A bushman known as ‘the Sundowner’ helps cattle station heiress Kim Marsden investigate the death of her father.
King of the Coral Sea feature film – 1954
A pearler in the Torres Strait uncovers an illegal people smuggling operation.
1960s
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.
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.
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.
The Set feature film – 1969
Aspiring young designer Paul Lawrence is drawn into the hedonistic world of Sydney’s upper-class society.
1970s
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.
Shirley Thompson versus the Aliens feature film – 1972
Maverick filmmaker Jim Sharman’s first film is unique – an engaging potpourri of sci-fi, rock’n'roll, anarchic comedy and psychological drama.
Sunstruck feature film – 1972
Welsh schoolteacher Stanley Evans takes a posting in Kookaburra Springs, a tiny outback town. He forms a children’s choir which travels to Sydney for a national competition.
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 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.
Summer City feature film – 1977
Best known as Mel Gibson’s first movie, Summer City is a laid-back road movie that emerges as more than just a throwaway, thanks to strong performances.
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.
Snapshot feature film – 1978
Snapshot holds some sort of distinction in thriller ranks for its use of a Mr Whippy ice-cream van as a deadly instrument.
Third Person Plural feature film – 1978
A look at the emotional entanglements of four Sydney friends who take a weekend boating trip.
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.
Thirst feature film – 1979
Australia’s only postmodern vampire movie, Thirst is a highlight of the ‘Ozploitation’ films made in the late 1970s and early 80s.
1980s
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.
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.
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.
Manganinnie feature film – 1980
Tasmania, 1830. Joanna, a little white girl, is adopted by Manganinnie, an Aborigine who has survived a slaughter.
The Clinic feature film – 1982
Medical student Paul Armstrong spends a day at a Melbourne VD clinic.
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.
Turkey Shoot feature film – 1982
Without doubt one of the most notorious Australian films ever made, Turkey Shoot has attracted both wildly positive and negative reactions over the years.
Strikebound feature film – 1983
A docudrama based on the memories of Wattie and Agnes Doig, a miner and his wife involved in the Gippsland coal workers’ strike of 1937.
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.
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.
Hellfire Jack: The John Curtin Story documentary – 1985
A portrait of John Curtin, Prime Minister of Australia from 1941 to 1945.
Around the World in 80 Ways feature film – 1986
Eddie and Wally Davis fake a round-the-world holiday for their senile old father.
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.
The Surfer feature film – 1986
Vietnam veteran Sam Barlow uncovers a conspiracy in Surfers Paradise involving police, politicians and a Vietnamese gang.
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.
Shame feature film – 1987
Perth lawyer Asta Cadell uncovers a series of sex crimes and dark secrets in a small town in Western Australia.
The Time Guardian feature film – 1987
The Time Guardian is one of the great missed opportunities of Australian cinema and symbolic of its wavering fortunes in the 1980s.
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.
Incident at Raven’s Gate feature film – 1988
Strange things are happening around the remote homestead of Raven’s Gate.
Father feature film – 1989
Elderly widower Joseph Mueller is accused of being a war criminal by Holocaust survivor Iya Zetnick.
1990s
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.
Strictly Ballroom feature film – 1992
Strictly Ballroom is one of the most popular Australian films ever made. The story may be nothing new but the execution is so colourful and eccentric it hardly matters.
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.
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.
That Eye, the Sky feature film – 1994
Twelve-year-old Morton ‘Ort’ Flack lives in the outback. When Ort’s father is paralysed in an accident, a stranger named Henry arrives, offering to help.
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.
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.
