For Australia
| For Australia | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Monte Luke assistant Martyn Keith |
| Written by | Martyn Keith |
| Starring | Boyd Irwin Charles Villers |
| Cinematography | Maurice Bertel |
Production company | |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 4,000 feet |
| Country | Australia |
| Languages | Silent film English intertitles |
For Australia is a 1915 Australian silent film directed by Monte Luke.[2]
Plot
[edit | edit source]A newspaper journalist, Stanley Lane (Boyd Irwin), discovers a German spy ring in Sydney led by Carl Hoffman (Charles Villiers). Lane is captured and imprisoned by Germans on an uncharted Pacific Island.
With the help of half-caste Samoan girl Kana (Alma Rock Phillips) he escapes and destroys a German wireless station in Samoa. He is re-captured and tied to a tree in a crocodile-infested swamp, but Kana saves him again. Later, HMAS Sydney invades the island and Hoffman runs into the swamp and is eaten by crocodiles.[3]
Cast
[edit | edit source]- Alma Rock Phillips as Kana
- Boyd Irwin as Stanley Lane
- Gwen Burroughs as Mrs De Winter
- Charles Villiers as Carl Hoffman
- Percy Walshe
Production
[edit | edit source]The film was made with the co-operation of the Australian government.[4][5] It was mostly shot in and around Sydney with some scenes at an aboriginal mission at Brewarrina in northern New South Wales.[6][7]
Release
[edit | edit source]The film was previewed in Melbourne on 18 October 1915. The Winner stated that:
The picture is a distinctly good example of what can be accomplished in locally-made films. The story is interesting... and has the right grip for picture purposes. Some fine natural scenery has been secured for many of the sections, and the Sydney-Emden fight has been cleverly worked out. On the whole, Mr Monte Luke, the director, and all associated with him in the production, have every reason to be proud of their work.[8]
However the film was not a success at the box office.[3][6]
For the Honour of Australia
[edit | edit source]The movie was combined with another film, How We Beat the Emden (1915), and the documentary How We Fought the Emden, to make a new movie for release in Britain called For the Honour of Australia (1916). A copy of this survives today.[9]
References
[edit | edit source]- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ a b Andrew Pike and Ross Cooper, Australian Film 1900–1977: A Guide to Feature Film Production, Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1998, p 55
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ a b Marsden, Ralph. 'The Old Tin Shed in Exhibition Street': The J. C. Williamson Studio, Melbourne's Forgotten Film Factory [online]. Metro Magazine: Media & Education Magazine, No. 157, 2008: 144-153. Availability: <http://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary;dn=519108300276483;res=IELAPA> Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).. [cited 15 Nov 14].
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Paul Byrnes, For the Honour of Australia at Australian Screen Online
External links
[edit | edit source]- For Australia at IMDbLua error in Module:WikidataCheck at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
- For Australia at National Film and Sound Archive
- Clip from film at Australian Screen Online