Review of Walkabout (1971) by Sara B — 31 Jan 2004

VIDEO.

Stunning visuals and an intriguing story make this study of a sister and brother stranded deep in the Australian outback a treat to savour. Jenny Agutter stars as a mature 14 year-old forced to try and lead her 6 year old brother (Nicolas Roeg's own son, Lucien John, now a producer) back to 'civillisation' when they're abandoned miles from home in Adelaide through the suicide of their father. Their battle for survival is eased somewhat when they are joined by a young aborigine on 'walkabout' and despite being unable to communicate with one another via spoken language, their goal to reach home is conveyed. With plenty of close-ups of outback critters and glorious sunsets this is a rewarding, enlightening movie. Deliberately oblique, the aborigine and western way of life are sometimes clumsily contrasted and the sexual undertones are so lightly sketched they're left totally to interpretation. Agutter's nude swimming scene might have appeared scandalous and ground-breaking in 1971 but by today's standards it's tame.