Walkabout' | Critics' Picks | The New York Times
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- čas přidán 11. 10. 2010
- A.O. Scott looks back at Nicolas Roeg's film about the persistent dream of innocence.
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Movies: Critics' Picks: 'Walkabout' - nytimes.com/video
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This film is like no other I have ever seen. It doesn’t follow the classic narrative structure, but rather just draws you in to a universal journey. It asks much if the viewer, and gives you a different reward every time you watch it. A masterpiece.
I watched this wonderful film whilst serving in Singapore in the Royal Marines quite amazing, never to be forgotten, as for the John Barry music WOW.
Haven't seen this film in decades. Saw it for the first time at age 20 and Jenny Agutter was the first actress that tugged at my heartstrings. I didn't understand where the film was heading until it neared its ending and when I figured it out I was shocked. The real shock came with the incredibly powerful ending.
Jenny Agutter. Tron, Logan's Run, and an American Werewolf in London.
She's a under rated dream in all of them. but she especially haunting in this movie
Hamlet cigar advert😁
This is a totally beautiful film in every way. Great scenery, great story, great acting and great music.I have watched it many times over the past 40 years and it always evokes a different emotion each time I see it. John Barry's music is so appropriate and the little bit of A E Houseman at the end sums up what the film is saying - that once innocence is lost it cannot be regained.
The greatness of this movie is a combination of many things, the hauntingly beautiful music score the visual content... And of course Jenny Aguttet.
Great summary of a movie that once experienced will forever remain in the psyche .
I read the book before I saw the film the first time (1971). The beginning is quite different. The nature shots are gorgeous. There are 2 stories here. Either the sexual tension between Aguttar and David or the dawning on the boy that his world is doomed just as the girl makes a servant out of him as she rejects him as a possible lover. I say this having now just seen it again for the 5th time.
This is one of the best films in the realm of classics. Even if it just introduces us to David and to Jenny both of whom have had long and powerful film careers. Jenny can be seen on the telly in Call the Midwife in which she plays an aging nun, Sister Julianne. A bold actress who is not afraid to play parts where she isn't beautiful and is an older nun in charge of a group of midwives.
I've had difficulties watching slow movies recently, but this one is great. Watching it was an experience.
One of the best films ever made.
I have the dvd ' it has strong emotional vibes.
"Roeg" is supposed to be pronounced "rogue"
Thank you for your thoughtful introduction to this wonderful movie!!!
I have seen 100's of films, always trying to find those that move me and this was one of them. So much so in fact that it virtually left me chocked and certainly moved. Just seeing brings back emotions, although I will never watch the whole film again, it will remain fresh and treasured from the first time I saw it many years ago. Utterly perfect in every way
It really moved me too. However, I was quite saddened by it despite some of the beauty.
Yes there is an underlying sadness about it. There is nothing definitive that can explain it because it will mean different things to different people, but what will be chasred is that feel of sadness, perhaps a sense of loss
¿Why do you say, "[. . .] although I will never watch the whole film again"?
Because to me nothing can equal the freshness, originality, enjoyment, emotions etc etc second, third, fourth time around. You may say, well why not watch again and at least get some of the original experience. My answer to that is the memory of an exceptional film is so very precious I dont want it diluted by familiarity. Its not that i havnt seen many excptional films, just simply my choice in preserving the original 'hit' from viewing.
@@MrNooneseesme
Well, I see Thee®.
Thank you for your reply and for your insights into this masterpiece.
I understand and respect your thinking and feeling.
This film moves me so much so that I almost burst out crying when I heard that last crackling of the girls radio in post credits. This film creates a sense of yearning to just jump back to a few scenes earlier when the story has already progressed and passed. It's almost like a clever metaphor for the evolution of human society. Yes we have rockets that land on other planets, but we also have places on our own planet that hasn't been touched. places that possess a gateway to the past.
thats why i love getting armed(safety) & go outdoor camping in the middle of nowhere it gives me intense pleasure and reminds me of my roots like bro we're not descended from the heavens above we are just animals doing time
one of my faverit movies of all time
My mother's cousin Edward Bond wrote the screenplay for this film.
I have a sandwich in my pocket. It's 3 o'clock and climbing...
Cool! I'd love knowing someone who helped create this film, it's one of my favorites ever.
Mark Harris: Kudos to your mother's cousin. The book is very different from the film. The director used his own son to play the little brother & he was really good & definitely the "Greek Chorus".
Perhaps the first film to give the landscape equal prominence to the characters. Roeg produced two masterpieces in succession at this time, this and Performance.
Love the idea around Innocence!
A classic of British Cinema - often repeated on our TV channels. A worthy inclusion in the NYT Critics Picks.
love this film and its dreamy quality
I'll be buggered if I know how to get from Sydney to the desert in 3 hours by vintage car on 70's roads. Who goes there in their school clothes????
Love A.O. Scott, but how can you review this movie and not mention John Barry's score? It's like reviewing Leone and not mentioning Morricone.
So true you are.
The music that John Barry has written for this film is among the greatest music that I have ever heard in my life (I'm 67 years young).
One can put Barry's score up against anything by Bach or the other great "masters."
Jennifer on My Mind...
Having recently been overwhelmed with the Barry-scored brilliance of Roeg's Outback wonderment for the first time, it understandably had me delving into Agutter's filmography with some degree of zeal. My mother had always fancied "The Railway Children", which I have never seen. My exposure to her work was limited to childhood T.V. viewings of "Logan's Run", until becoming entranced by her shimmering filmic elegance during a theatrical screening of Landis' lycanthropic opus as a teenager. Other than James Salter's "Three", Nic Roeg's "Walkabout" is without question, the only film which has residually left me with the same dazzling feeling of heightened electric melancholia as it climaxed. Without a doubt, the most emotionally resonant movie I have ever experienced...
Sums it up perfectly. enough said.
I'd strongly suggest you watch 'The Railway Children' if you haven't already. It is probably the finest British children's film ever made and one of Jenny Agutter's best performances.
They aren"t inexplicably abandoned by their Father. He Kills himself in the Desert and intends them to die - anticipation of the Worthlessness of middleclass existence in 70"s Australia.
Yes, I was wondering what they were on about with that line.
He was trying not to spoil the film.
Fed Smith: He shoots at them more than once before setting fire to the car. In the book it is a plane flight and I don't recall a dad.
Beautifully told story, with Nicolas Roeg, both directing and photographing (his son plays Jenny Agutter's younger brother).
The only stickler I have about the film - and it's minor - is how the kids end up in the outback in the first place (I won't give this away for those who haven't see the film).
I read the book before I saw the film. The film is ridiculous about how they got to the Outback. i am not sure if that is what you meant or if it is how they came to be alone.
However, I don’t think it is a spoiler to note the Outback is at least a day or two’s drive from Sydney. Further no one with any sense would go into the Outback without spare water, petrol and suitable clothing (not winter school uniforms). It is a trek, not a picnic.
So for me the more unbelievable part is the concept of driving to the Outback for the day. West of Sydney for about 300 to 400 kilometres is agricultural land that is comparatively lush at times when it is not in drought. It only starts becoming quite arid after that. You can look on the satellite images on Google and there is a clear demarcation.
The locations look to be in the Top End of the Northern Territory, about 4 1/2 hours flight from Sydney. That, for me it’s not a minor point as it misrepresents Australia. In the book the children survive a plane crash.
There was nothing innocent about my dreams about Jenny Agutter when I first saw this as a 14 year old! :-)
Loved Jenny and she is still a lovely lady.
Great film!
One of the best films about Australia. Another one is 'Wake in Fright'. Both directed by non-Australians, sadly.
Nothing like a relaxing break in The Yabba. 😄
@@1977Suspiria Yes, I was so terrified by that place I haven't left Sydney since!
both brilliant films. the stories, the incredible atmosphere, the landscapes, the characters. they both perfectly capture a specific time and place.
I love Aussie films and I think this is my favorite. But does anyone know -- there's one I've been trying to track down for years: There's a teenage girl and boy who meet on the road, and travel together. I think it might have been filmed in the 70s or 80s or 90s. . . I especially remember a scene where they spend the night in an abandoned church. It's another film with a very melancholy feel.
Pete Weir took this torch lit by Roeg and constructed an intersectiom of myth that concludes in hyper awareness for its protagonist in The Last Wave (1977). I highly advise watching them in double feature style, as Weir's film is equally visually stunning when the aboriginal perspective is expanded in the plot. Wheras Roeg began the Australian New Wave by use of water as a primal method of exchange, Weir actually capped the period by concluding his film with the same idea.
@pglink thank you very much. i listened to that bit at least 20 times and it just started sounding more and more unintelligible. it was bothering me because Scott really words his reviews quite eloquently. thanks again, take care
@modernity2001 i agree, the book is great as well. have you any idea what A.O scott says at the end of the video , it sounds like "but that the memory or maybe the dream of our time in ? is always with us. I ve listened to it several times and cant make it out. thanks kindly
Our time in Eden
A truly life changing movie lyrically beautiful 😍 i recall Richard chamberlain being in another Australian movie about the same time had the same effect glorious
It was The Last Wave.
My God Agutter was beautiful
ted loser ....is
And so was David Gulpillil (still is, too)
Both still were but David recently died
One of the most beautiful tragedies ever created. Though I do have to say some of the editing was overly indulgent and psychedelic (a product of its time perhaps). The natural beauty of the film was really the star and is absolutely timeless.
great score as well by John Barry
lovely review of a lovely film
A movie that made a lasting impression on me. But I do agree with the point of almost self indulgence.
I wonder who this self refers to then?
Really, this movie is a parable.
I loved this movie
superb film
This film reminded me alot of the blue lagoon.....even this one came out first.
Considering the Blue Lagoon came out in 1949 it is possible.
The Blue Lagoon of the 1970s, you mean? If so, I agree. I haven't seen the 1949 one.
Btw the sequel to The Blue Lagoon is as bad as the original is good. I wish I'd never even watched that one.
Alternative ending, two bond and raise a family.
Michael Edwards: Oh sure. Not a chance.
Their world viewpoints were such a distance apart so that neither could survive in the other’s world.
The actor who played the Aboriginal boy’s own life shows that as he was introduced to alcohol during the filming of this film, and probably smoking. He died of lung cancer in November 2021. He was no longer living on hid traditional Country and he felt stretched between the two cultures.
(Inhave not named the actor as I am unsure as to whether to use his name or not. Wikipedia has contradictory information about this point).
the best movie ever made (alongside with Barry Lyndon)
And The Duellists.
A moment of respectful silence for fiery death of the Dad's VW Beetle. Alas, bless its soul.
:)
I'm just glad this was filmed in 1971, when these cool cars weren't so rare.
RussellG: I also felt badly for that little VWbeetle. In the book it was a plane crash and as I recall, no dad at all.
Yes trippy👌🏻
In the seventies that whole native movement was going on here in America also .we all wanted to learn about the Native Americans. looking back it's kind of shallow and hypocritical because the people who wanted to do that most always made sure they had a nice four-bedroom Colonial in the suburbs to live in at the end of the day. I don't think any of them were going to live in teepees. That being said this is a powerful movie. Australia did several things in the 70s: Picnic at Hanging Rock which is another cult movie, and Prisoner of Cell Block H a late 70s soap opera that's become a cult series.
The Wokies of the seventies, yes, definitely. But there are people who came to stay on The Red Road. Those ones become family.
I always thought -- if only the girl here could have seen what she could have had, if she'd accepted the boy's proposal dance and stayed with him as his wife. Her little brother was thriving there, and she and the boy could have started their own family. The wistful way she looks at the end, I think maybe she would have been happier. . .
Or maybe not, maybe she was too acclimated to "real dishes and sheets" like she said. I know if I had been her, I would've stayed.
@@zxyatiywariii8 interesting and thoughtful comments thanks for the reply. Here in America in the late 60s you had a lot of young people starting communes, but after a few years they all collapsed. let's face it, when you grow up in a cushy suburban community iy's hard to let go. My interpretation of the final scene is that she is very conflicted: she sees herself back to where she started from and is wondering if maybe it would have been better to have stayed. what great ending though because it leaves you with a big (?) Rather than a cut-and-dry ending.
this and the Tree of life and The Long day closer's andIntersteller and a Christmas choral are the best films
Roeg like Vogue
I like this movie as much as I hate A.O. Scott-which is to say, a great deal
@jeremyshambles "our time in Eden"
These critics are such tossers. Self endulgence..open your heart, not your eyes
She's only just turned 16.
I believe Jenny said she was 17 when it was filmed.
I also believe she was 17
@@nigelwillson8000 She has since said she was actually 16, which was a legal age in both Australia and her native Britain at the time. The film has been re-reviewed by British censors in more recent times, and they still passed her nude shots becuase they found there was nothing grautiotous, exploitative or pornographic about them.
@@nigelwillson8000 3 years since your comment but it was filmed Sept/Nov 1969 and she didn’t turn 17 until late December that year
The film is wonderful but the reviewer is annoyingly 'woke' I'm sad to say . He just had to put in a virtue signalling quip about how terrible western society is in contrast to the aboriginal way of life . Please don't do this as it's unnecessary .
At the time it was made everyone was talking about the ‘concrete jungle’ and how the West had lost touch with nature: not quite the same as the current obsession with sending us ALL back to the Stone Age, but fruit of the same tree. I think the reviewer was trying to get that across but put his boot in his mouth.
I agree with both comments. I definitely don't consider this a Woke film, but the reviewer just has to cram wokeness into it. Gross. That's like the time I peeled a nice, delicious-looking banana and was about to take a bite and suddenly I saw a fat, writhing maggot inside. That's wokeness -- it grosses out whatever it infects.😖🤦🏾♀️
It's a pandemic and no one has invented a cure yet.
I saw the movie just by chance in TV and afterwards immediately ordered the DVD for my collection of top-movies (little "blockbusters" among them). It impressed me a lot, but didn't improve my personal opinion about white people in general. Which is not the best to say it mildly, although I'm white too. At all events the movie only increased my feeling that I feel far more comfortable among non-whites than among my fellow whites. The only people I meet privately from time to time are non-whites indeed.
I felt like the film showed how we all COULD be, if we can see each other for who we are and not just what color we are. The teenage boy and the little brother did. And for a few brief moments, the girl did, too. But she'd been too deeply acclimated to her city life, and in the end, she couldn't accept the boy's proposal dance and just wanted to get back to "real dishes and sheets". 😞🤦🏾♀️
Isn't it odd that White people have given you almost every conceivable indulgence in life yet you feel uncomfortable around them. You sound utterly ridiculous. Go and live in the Congo, I'm sure you'll be happier there.
@@zxyatiywariii8Or maybe she was too young and simply didn't fancy him ?
🙂🙂🙂🙂
1:35 - 1:42 White man bad, native man good. Come on Scott, that's just lazy, self-indulgent, sophomoric reviewing.
Lol yes...
I mean Scott has a point, doesnt he? While this film is one of my favorite, I did get that impression from the filmmaker too.
Its true tho
@@oceanbreeze6812 no, it's a reductivist and ultimately self-serving non-argument that does nothing to solve any ongoing problems in the world, as it continues to look backward and only backward. Reviewing this beautiful film strictly in that context is a waste of time.
@@Vesnicie It's all about moving forward, that is, forward upon a circular cycle. White mans reign is coming to an end. The ending of this movie perfectly gives us insights into whats happening right now. The grown up girl is not happy with the white man and dreams of being with black boy, without the stresses of white mans ego and materialism....and greed and environmental destruction . You are not seeing it, but change is occurring....the white mans reign is fading.
who's here for some last minute literature homework?
----almost to the pt of self -indulgence! lol..this is a reviewer's word....bs.........weak analysis
I loved walkabout during the 1970s but see it now as a flawed and problematic masterpiece. Surely everything we have learned about the idea of the 'gaze' from feminist theory would make us a bit hesitant about some of the camera pov created by roeg. Some of the shots of jenny agutter early in the film were a voyeur's wet dream. Not to mention the use of the bodies of indigenous people, especially the shots of david gulpipil from behind. the depiction of dead people is deeply disturbing for the indigenous people and their permission must be sought. Despite the ideas of the 'noble savage' and the rather crude exposition of civilisation's flaws, there is still much of the imperial mentality about this film.
+kilian mcnamara your thoughts relating to Walkabout and if this were to be released today, I truly believe are a product of somebody who really appreciates Australian cinema! I applaud you
I understand what you are saying. In passing, I would posit that not all art/literature is necessarily meant to be put through the modern restrictive kaleidoscope of cinematic faux pas. Especially being that this is an outstanding movie. When I watch a film from another era I tend to view with a combination of lenses. The time it was made, lasting power, and strength of plot being more notable than how it compares to present day cinema/art. Though your critique is obviously true- it wouldn't necessarily have to alter a balanced, non-perverted persons experience watching this film. Pardon my mini-ramble, peace ;)
I find the swimming scene to be incredibly innocent actually. It's based on a painting by *forget the artists name, but Miss Agutter talks about it in the Criterion extras* and there is a pronounced Garden of Eden thing going on here.
Especially in relation to...what happens later...I don't want to give it away here in case people are reading who haven't seen it yet, but I think you probably know what I am talking about.
All GREAT points though, and they have me thinking yet again from a different perspective on a film I have seen MANY times. Appreciated!
Glad to see this whole discussion. I just watched this film for the first time and I was a bit... nervous... at times about how some of Roeg's cinematographic and plot choices might take a turn for the much more problematic. Armed with the knowledge that it's a relatively positive message overall, (and thank you for addressing the swimming scene, I'll have to find that interview!) I'll be diving right in for another watch :)
Kilian, your post says more about your own narrow view than about the film.