Le fils de l'orage

This timeless classic Australian masterpiece did not disappoint in the slightest. The cinematography is brilliant, the acting is great (remember this was 1976 Australia) - especially from child actor Greg Rowe (who is now all grown up and living with his wife and two kids in Canada). David Gulpilil also provides a wandering Aboriginal man mysticism to the film and he looks quite younger than in Australia but it's like he is playing the same character. A character well suited to him. The area in which it is set is just beautiful and while Storm Boy battles with his needs to see the greater world and gain an education - all I wanted to do when watching was to swap places with him. The film supplies a lot of themes about nurturing, growing, the circle of life (thankyou Lion King), isolation, friendship and the morality of right and wrong. The battle between life in general and the life the rest of the population says we should be living.

The film is funny at times, touching, sad and inspiring and will make you want a pet pelican!!!

Try and get to see this one - I know Target has them for $7- and you can probably pick up at most places for same price - or rent it. One disappointing thing about it - the DVD is a straight copy of an older print - it is not remastered, but somehow to me this added to it's age and quality - like a fine port on film.

I found this film on youtube after seeing a few clips on BBC2's 'Coast Australia'. I have just been to Australia and to the Coorong in particular, so was delighted to find the film, for all sorts of reasons.

The cinematography was very atmospheric, making the best of the scenery and the weather. The young boy - Mike or Storm Boy - a name given to him by Fingerbone, an Aboriginal man he befriends, was excellent in the part. By the way it has been wrongly stated in other reviews that this was David Gulpilil's film debut - it was not - he played the young aboriginal boy in "Walkabout" some years earlier. Gulpilil is always a fine actor.

The pelicans were a delight - I had no idea they could be trained like that and watching them and the interaction with Storm Boy was extraordinary. It might be classed as a film for children, but many adults would enjoy it - I certainly did.

I saw this film just after I left school in 1981. To the best of my knowledge, it hasn't been broadcast on British television since. I recently had the pleasure of watching this wonderful film for the second time, after it was finally released on DVD in the UK.

Although essentially a children's film, I think adults will find this an engaging movie - particularly Greg Rowe's endearing performance in the title role. Hard to believe it was made so long ago.

Message to any Australians reading this thread - Has there ever been a dramatisation of the Beaumont Children case?

http://www.beaumontchildren.com/

I recall this film very fondly from my late teenage years and was keen to revisit it, partly in preparation for a stage play adaptation we will be seeing shortly. I had studied the book at school and saw this film once in 1976 or 1977 in its first release.

I found it remarkably fresh and almost as captivating as back then. Greg Rowe as the young Mike (Storm Boy) and David Gulpilil as Fingerbone, the Aboriginal youth who befriends him is his lonely isolation were just as convincing. Somehow Peter Cummins's 'Hide away Tom Kingley still didn't quite ring true, despite the obvious challenges in such a reclusive role. I'm not sure the school scenes worked as well as they could have done either. But Tony Allison's national park ranger portrayal is wonderful, with the challenging handling of the same issues rangers face today.

But it does shows what telling the story truly, without trying sugar coat the darker bits can be so effective and provides lasting impressions.

The photography and locations are just brilliant, as are the pelicans. In fact, the capturing of these locations as they were in the mid 1970s is probably even more important now, given the environmental degradation the Coorong has suffered over the 40 years since then, with greatly reduced water flows into the lower Murray and probably declining water quality as well.

i've found casually in an obscure local tv "Stormy boy" and in the same moment i went in my youthness. This is a very delicate and intriguing movie. And i've rewiewed the boys, the wear, and a tipical manner of realization movies for children of the '70. i love the photography of this movie and his simplicity. Goodbye mr. Percival 8/10 my rating