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Rabbit-Proof Fence

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Template:Short description {{#invoke:other uses|otheruses}} Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use Australian English Template:Infobox film Rabbit-Proof Fence is a 2002 Australian epic drama film directed and produced by Phillip Noyce. It was based on the 1996 book Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence by Doris Pilkington Garimara, an Aboriginal Australian author. It is loosely based on the author's mother Molly Craig, aunt Daisy Kadibil, and cousin Gracie, who escaped from the Moore River Native Settlement, north of Perth, Western Australia, to return to their Aboriginal families. They had been removed from their families and placed there in 1931.

The film follows the Aboriginal girls as they walk for nine weeks along Template:Cvt of the Australian rabbit-proof fence to return to their community at Jigalong. They were pursued by white law enforcement officials and an Aboriginal tracker.<ref name = "film">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The film explores the official child removal policy that existed in Australia between approximately 1905 and 1967. Its victims, who were taken from their families, now are called the "Stolen Generations".

The soundtrack to the film, called Long Walk Home: Music from the Rabbit-Proof Fence, is by English singer and songwriter Peter Gabriel. British producer Jeremy Thomas, who has a long connection with Australia, was executive producer of the film. He sold it internationally through his company HanWay Films. In 2005 the British Film Institute included this film in the BFI list of the "50 films one should see by the age of 14."

PlotEdit

In 1931, two sistersTemplate:Snd14-year-old Molly and 8-year-old DaisyTemplate:Sndand their 10-year-old cousin Gracie are living in the Western Australian town of Jigalong. The town lies along the northern part of one of the fences making up Australia's rabbit-proof fence (called Number One Fence), which runs for over one thousand miles.

More than a thousand miles away in Perth, the official Protector of Western Australian Aborigines, A. O. Neville (called Mr. Devil by them), signs an order to relocate the three girls to the Moore River Native Settlement. The children are referred to by Neville as "half-castes", because they each have Aboriginal mothers and white fathers. Neville had concluded that the Aboriginal people of Australia were a danger to themselves, and the "half-castes" must be bred out of existence. He plans to place the girls in a camp where they, along with all half-castes of that age range, both boys and girls, will grow up.

They would be trained to work as labourers and servants to white families, which were regarded as "good" situations for them in life. It was assumed that they would marry whites, and so on through the generations, so that eventually the Aboriginal "blood" would diminish in society.

The three girls are forcibly taken from their families at Jigalong by a local constable, Riggs. They were sent to the camp at the Moore River Native Settlement, in the south west, about 90 km (55 miles) north of Perth.

While at the camp, the girls are housed in a large dormitory with dozens of other children, where they are strictly regimented by nuns. They are prohibited from speaking their native language, forced to pray as Christians, and subject to corporal punishment for any infractions of the camp's rules. Attempts at escape are also harshly punished, as seen in the film, where an escapee is beaten and has their hair cut off. During an impending thunderstorm that will help cover their tracks, Molly convinces the girls to escape and return to their home.

File:Rabbit proof fence map showing route.PNG
Map of the rabbit-proof fence showing the trip from Moore River to Jigalong

During their flight, the girls are relentlessly pursued by Moodoo, an Aboriginal tracker from the camp. They eventually find their way back to the rabbit-proof fence, which they believe will lead them back to their home. They follow the fence for months, encountering a family who gives them clothes and food, as well as a camper who shows them a shortcut, which allows them to narrowly avoid Moodoo and Neville's agents. They also encounter a maid, who lets them stay at her room for a night, but they are discovered by her master, who is implied to be abusing her. After another narrow escape, Neville spreads word that Gracie's mother is waiting for her in the town of Wiluna. The information finds its way to an Aboriginal traveller who "helps" the girls.

He tells Gracie about her mother and says they can get to Wiluna by train, causing her to leave the other two girls in an attempt to catch a train to Wiluna. Molly and Daisy soon walk after her and find her at a train station. They are not reunited, however, as Riggs appears and Gracie is recaptured. The betrayal is revealed by Riggs, who tells the man he will receive a shilling for his help.

Knowing they are powerless to aid her, Molly and Daisy continue their journey. They lose the fence for a while travelling through a harsh desert, but Molly is eventually guided back by an eagle. In the end, after a nine-week journey through the harsh Australian outback, having walked the Template:Cvt route along the fence, the two sisters return home and go into hiding in the desert with their mother and grandmother. Meanwhile, Neville realizes he can no longer afford the search for Molly and Daisy, and decides to end it.

EpilogueEdit

The film's epilogue shows recent footage of Molly and Daisy. Molly explains that Gracie died before she could ever return to Jigalong. Molly says that she had two daughters. She and they were taken from Jigalong back to Moore River. She managed to escape with one daughter, her young Annabelle. She carried the girl much of the way along the length of the fence back home. However, when Annabelle was three years old, she was taken away once more. Molly never saw her again. In closing, Molly says that she and Daisy "... are never going back to that place".

CastEdit

ProductionEdit

The film is adapted from the book Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence, by Doris Pilkington Garimara, an Aboriginal Australian. It is the second book of her trilogy documenting her family's stories.<ref name = "Pilkington">Template:Cite journal</ref> The other two books are Caprice: A Stockman’s Daughter (1991) and Under the Wintamarra Tree (2002).

Stills photographs in the film were made by well-known Aboriginal Australian photographer Mervyn Bishop.<ref name=npg>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> His work is held at the National Portrait Gallery of Australia.

ReceptionEdit

Public receptionEdit

The film stirred controversy in Australia relating to the government's historical policy of removing mixed-race Aboriginal children from their families in Aboriginal communities and placing them in state institutions. They became known as the Stolen Generations.<ref name="Fickling">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Byrnes">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Eric Abetz, a government minister, announced the publication of a leaflet criticising the film's portrayal of the treatment of Indigenous Australians, and demanded an apology from the filmmakers. Director Phillip Noyce suggested that instead the government should apologise to the numerous Indigenous people affected by the removal policy.Template:Refn

Conservative commentators, such as Andrew Bolt, also attacked the historical accuracy of the film. Bolt criticised the numerous disparities between the film and Pilkington Garimara's novel. This angered the author, who said that Bolt had misquoted her.Template:Refn The academic Robert Manne in turn accused Bolt of historical denialism. Screenwriter Christine Olsen wrote a detailed response to Bolt's claims.Template:Refn

Olsen attributed the angry response among some of the public to the fact that it was based in events that were "demonstrably true" and well-documented.Template:Refn However, the filmmaker said that the film was meant primarily as a drama rather than a political or historical statement. Noyce said, "If drama comes from conflict, there's no greater conflict in Australian history than the conflict between Indigenous Australians and white settlers."Template:Refn

The historian Keith Windschuttle also disputed the film's depiction of events. In his work The Fabrication of Aboriginal History, he wrote that Molly and the two other girls had been removed for their own welfare, and that the two older girls had been sexually involved with white men. Noyce and Olsen rejected these criticisms, stating that Windschuttle's research was incomplete.<ref name="Maddox & Munro">Template:Cite news</ref> Pilkington Garimara denied Windschuttle's claims of sexual activity between her mother and local whites, stating that the claims were a distortion of history.<ref name="Perpitch">Template:Cite news</ref>

Critical responseEdit

The film received positive reviews from critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes's score is 88% based on 145 reviews. The site's Critics' Consensus states, "Visually beautiful and well-acted, Rabbit-Proof Fence tells a compelling true-life story".<ref>Template:Rotten-tomatoes</ref> On Metacritic, the film has an aggregated score of 80 out of 100, indicating "generally favorable reviews".<ref>Template:Metacritic film</ref>

David Stratton of SBS awarded the film four stars out of five, commenting that Rabbit-Proof Fence is a "bold and timely film about the stolen generations."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Box officeEdit

Rabbit-Proof Fence grossed $16.2 million worldwide, including $3.8 million in Australia.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

AccoladesEdit

WinsEdit

2001 – Queensland Premier's Literary Awards.<ref name="Premier">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Film Script—the Pacific Film and Television Commission Award (Christine Olsen)<ref name="Awards">Template:Cite news</ref>
2002 – Australian Film Institute Awards<ref name = "AFIA">Template:Cite news</ref>
2002 – Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards<ref name= "FCCoA">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Best Director (Phillip Noyce)
  • Best Screenplay—Adapted (Christine Olsen)
2002 – Inside Film Awards<ref name = "IFA">Template:Cite news</ref>
2002 – New South Wales Premier's History Awards<ref name = "NSW">{{#invoke
citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

2002 (United States) – Aspen Filmfest<ref name = "Aspen2">Template:Cite news</ref>
2002 (Switzerland) – Castellinaria International Festival of Young Cinema,<ref name = "Youth">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • ASPI Award (Phillip Noyce)
  • Golden Castle (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (United States) – The 2002 Starz Encore Denver International Film Festival<ref name = "Denver">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • People's Choice Award: Best Feature-Length Fiction Film (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (South Africa) – Durban International Film Festival<ref name = "Durban1">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Audience Award (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (United Kingdom) – Edinburgh International Film Festival<ref name = "eiff">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Audience Award (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (United Kingdom) – Leeds International Film Festival<ref name = "fish">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Audience Award (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (United States) – National Board of Review Awards 2002<ref name = "National">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Freedom of Expression Award
  • Best Director (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (United States) – San Francisco Film Critics Circle<ref name = "SFFCC">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Special Citation (Phillip Noyce, also for The Quiet American (2002))
  • Audience Award: Best Foreign Film (Phillip Noyce)
2002 (Spain) – Valladolid International Film Festival<ref name = "Valladolid">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Audience Award: Feature Film (Phillip Noyce)
2003 (United Kingdom) – London Critics Circle Film Awards (ALFS)<ref name = "lfcca">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Director of the Year (Phillip Noyce, also for The Quiet American (2002))
2003 (Brazil) – São Paulo International Film Festival<ref name = "sao">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Audience Award: Best Foreign Film (Phillip Noyce)

NominationsEdit

2002 (Australia)
Australian Film Institute Nominations<ref name = "AFI2">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Best Actor in a Supporting Role (David Gulpilil)
  • Best Cinematography (Christopher Doyle)
  • Best Costume Design (Roger Ford)
  • Best Direction (Phillip Noyce)
  • Best Editing (Veronika Jenet, John Scott)
  • Best Production Design (Roger Ford)
  • Best Screenplay Adapted from Another Source (Christine Olsen)
2002 (Australia)
Film Critics Circle of Australia Nominations<ref name = "FCCoA"/> Australia
2002 (Poland)
Camerimage—2002 International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography<ref name = "Camerimage">Template:Cite news</ref>
2002 (United States)
Golden Trailer Award Nominations<ref name = "Trailer">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Golden Trailer: Best Independent
2003 (United States)
Golden Globe Nominations<ref name = "Globe">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Golden Globe: Best Original Score—Motion Picture (Peter Gabriel)
2003 (United States)
Motion Picture Sound Editors Nomination<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Golden Reel Award: Best Sound Editing in Foreign Features (Juhn Penders, Craig Carter, Steve Burgess, Ricky Edwards, Andrew Plain)
2003 (United States)
Political Film Society Awards<ref name = "Political">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Exposé
  • Human Rights
2003 (United States)
Young Artist Awards<ref name = "Young">Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Best Performance in a Feature Film—Supporting Young Actress (Everlyn Sampi)
  • Best Performance in a Feature Film—Young Actress Age Ten or Under (Tianna Sansbury)

See alsoEdit

ReferencesEdit

Template:Reflist

Further readingEdit

External linksEdit

Template:Sister project 

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