Review of Walkabout (1971) by Emily B — 20 Apr 2008

I knew I had come across this film before. I remember bits of it from watching it as a child, and being confused (and slightly disturbed) by the father shooting himself and setting himself and the car on fire. Watching it again now I can understand and appreciate the film for what it is, a beautiful, strange and engaging piece of cinema.

The story centres on a brother and sister who are left to fend for themselves in the Australian outback after their father kills himself. Just as it seems there is no hope for them help comes in the form of a young Aborigine boy on his "Walkabout" (a traditional Aborigine ritual).

Things go well for a while, although there are difficulties communicating (especially between the girl and Aborigine boy) the three characters survive through the harsh landscape, with the two olders members taking on almost Mother and Father roles to the young boy.

Eventually, after weeks of walking, the boy leads them to an empty house, here we see the end of the Aborigine. I won't go into too much detail as I don't want to ruin the film for anyone.

This film is filled with beautiful scenery of the Australian outback, which is one of the reasons this is so engaging seeing as there is limited action and dialouge. Most of today's generation would probably find this boring, but I recommend everyone to see this excellent film.