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Clip description
Steve McAllister (Chips Rafferty) tells the District officer (Fred Kaad) that he’s not taking Louise Demarcet, a UN doctor (Françoise Christophe) up the Sepik River. The boat captain (Richard Davis) advises her that shorts are not acceptable for women in these parts. McAllister and 'Sharkeye’ Kelly (Reg Lye) are surprised when she appears in a dress.
Curator’s notes
The scene has the traditional suspicion of women in frontier places that a lot of Australian films have shared, even as late as We of the Never Never and Crocodile Dundee. It was partly the norm in Hollywood adventure movies too, especially those set in Africa, a genre that this film takes a few pointers from. Note the double standards for dress – the women can’t wear short shorts, but the men can wear long shorts (like the captain). The servant wears a lap-lap and tee-shirt – which was unusual. For a lot of the colonial administration in PNG, servants were not permitted to wear a shirt.
