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Clip description
Sandy (John Jarratt) waits in the car while Scollop (Mel Gibson) and Robbie (Phil Avalon) pick up Boo (Steve Bisley). Boo asks girlfriend Gloria (Karen Williams) to tidy up while he’s away. The four mates hit the road travelling north.
Curator’s notes
The concept of Aussie ‘mateship’ is explored in this sequence. Scollop doesn’t mind that Boo has slept with Gloria, a girl he’s had his eye on. ‘I don’t care, Boo’s me mate’, he says. Boo’s uncouth behaviour contrasts sharply with well-educated Sandy, who chooses to remain in the car while Boo tells Gloria, his latest conquest, to clean up while he’s gone. Sandy makes an awkward attempt to fit in, but he and Boo can never be true mates. The driving sequence shows ‘bronzed Aussie’ males drinking beer in their funky ‘Yank Tank’ Chevrolet and looking forward to a weekend of sun and fun. As they pass through a country town Boo bares his bottom from the car window. In Australian parlance, this male bonding ritual is called ‘chucking a browneye’. The jaunty music by Phil Butkis emphasises the jovial, carefree mood.
