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Dr Plonk (2007)

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clip The brilliant Dr Plonk

Original classification rating: G. This clip chosen to be G

Clip description

Dr Plonk (Nigel Lunghi) and his mute assistant, Paulus (Paul Blackwell), are working in Plonk’s laboratory. Mrs Plonk (Magda Szubanski) slips on a banana skin discarded by Paulus.

Curator’s notes

by Richard Kuipers

The first scene of Dr Plonk pays tribute to one of the most frequently used and reliable props in silent comedy – the banana peel. Audiences in 1907 knew that once a banana appeared somebody was bound to slip over, and nothing has changed a century later. In this case the honour goes to Mrs Plonk, played by popular comedienne Magda Szubanski (Babe, 1995; Kath and Kim, 2002–07).

Also noteworthy is the authentic look of the film. Cinematographer Judd Overton shot Dr Plonk on expired film stock and used a hand-wound motor such as that used in the silent era. Seen at the beginning of this clip, the archival footage of Adelaide in the early 20th century convincingly matches the new material.

Thanks to the generosity of the rights holders, we are able to offer The brilliant Dr Plonk from the feature film Dr Plonk as a high quality video download.

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australianscreen is produced by the National Film and Sound Archive. By using the website you agree to comply with the terms and conditions described elsewhere on this site. The NFSA may amend the 'Conditions of Use’ from time to time without notice.

All materials on the site, including but not limited to text, video clips, audio clips, designs, logos, illustrations and still images, are protected by the Copyright Laws of Australia and international conventions.

When you access australianscreen you agree that:

  • You may retrieve materials for information only.
  • You may download materials for your personal use or for non-commercial educational purposes, but you must not publish them elsewhere or redistribute clips in any way.
  • You may embed the clip for non-commercial educational purposes including for use on a school intranet site or a school resource catalogue.
  • The National Film and Sound Archive’s permission must be sought to amend any information in the materials, unless otherwise stated in notices throughout the Site.

All other rights reserved.

ANY UNAUTHORISED USE OF MATERIAL ON THIS SITE MAY RESULT IN CIVIL AND CRIMINAL LIABILITY.

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