Review of Walkabout (1971) by Paul A — 06 Apr 2009

The story of a British teenage schoolgirl and her young brother who find themselves lost in the Australian outback for reasons outside of their control. The girl is fully aware of their predicament but the boy doesn't let reality get in the way of his fertile imagination except for the odd moment or two of revelation. In the nick of time they encounter an Australian Aborigine on his "walkabout" and he shows them the basics of survival, despite apparently not speaking any English. They carry on their adventure together with the Aborigine becoming love-struck with the girl, played by a 15-year old Jenny Agutter.

This film is one of contrasts - confining walls versus freedom, European culture versus ancient Aboriginal culture, city living versus outback living, killing animals for profit versus killing animals for the bare essentials of survival.

Without giving the story away, the most memorable scene for me is at the end when the girl has grown up and married, living in the same seaside apartment she lived in as a teen. Her husband returns home while she is washing the dishes and tells her the current office news. While he is driveling on with the excruciating minutia of office politics, her mind wanders off and she recalls her memories of the outback - the grittiness, the smells, the freedom - the realness of it all.