A two-and-a-half (approximately 150 minute) version existed before its Sydney Film Festival Premiere. A two hour director's cut played at this Sydney Film Festival on 1 June 1975. The final release cut runs just over an hour and a half (94 minutes). Australian film historian, critic and curator Paul Brynes has said: "Thirty minutes of the original film were cut by producers, and some critics suggest the removal of important subplots might have diminished the story. The 'director's cut' has never been made available to the public."
Reportedly, Jack Thompson once said to Australian film critic David Stratton in Autumn 1976 that this film's two-hour second longer cut (the first ran 2½ hours) was emotionally shattering and was one of the finest if not the finest of achievements of the Australian cinema.
The first Australian film to be invited to the Cannes Film Festival.
The main tagline for the film: "Friday night... too tired. Saturday night... too drunk. Sunday... too far away" is called The Shearer's Wife's Lament.