User reviews

Despite its rather rambling structure, this is movie is a great achievement - as a portrait of a 19th century, white Australian woman trying to cope with life in the outback. It's beautifully photographed, written and acted, with the exception of the male lead, who is astoundingly miscast. Such a shame, as otherwise this would have been a completely absorbing and accurate depiction of conditions faced by a woman, married to a typical man of the land; the only white woman in a very male world, and inn a world in which indigenous people are treated as third class citizens. I recommend this to schools and educators and to film historians - as an example of how to make a great movie with not much money and a lot of commitment. See the extras on the DVD - even in those, the male lead reveals himself to be completely out of step with the spirit of the film.

A remarkable movie about a woman overcoming sexist and racial prejudice in outback Australia. McGregor is very convincing as Jeannie Gunn as she battles constantly to be seen as an equal amongst the menfolk on the station on which she lives with her husband. The fight seems a losing battle however as the views held by the men (regarding both women and indigenous people) are hard to overcome.

Anyone outside of Australia who is interested in an accurate portrayal of the early relations between Australian Aborigines and white Australian's then this movie is for you.

Agreeing to live with her cattle rancher husband in the Australian outback circa 1900, a young woman finds her preconceptions and views on the world at large changed in this iconic drama, based on actual events. Having never lived outside the suburbs and finding herself with no Caucasian female company at all, 'We of the Never Never' at first seems predictable with lead actress Angela Punch McGregor undergoing many trials and tribulations adjusting to her new life. The plot soon thickens though as she befriends the local Indigenous Australians and finds herself at odds with her Caucasian companions (including her husband), who treat the Aborigines as second class citizens. Particularly compelling are the maternal instincts that swell up inside her as she bonds with a young Indigenous girl without strong parental figures in her life. The question then arises of whether she actually has the girl's best interests at heart by taking her away from her family and basically trying to adopt her. Further questions of inference arise with an Indigenous man who she tries to force to take medicine, and it is all endlessly engaging as we witness a character with more moral fibre than those around her wrestling with whether or not her generosity is in fact beneficial. The less said about the strained relationship with her husband and Arthur Dignam's hardly remarkable performance the better, but this is Punch McGregor's film all the way with a special mention to the breathtaking majestic landscape photography that makes the outback seem more alluring than ever.

Watching the film straight after reading the book made for a very poor viewing experience. Where the characters in the book were alive and so multi-dimensional, they sadly lost most of that in the film, which chose to diverge from the book in so many places that it became unrecognizable. Key events in the film did not happen in the book and others that I considered important were omitted from the film. The book was set as a narrative, you were following her thoughts, listening to her voice and I wish they had transferred this concept to the film. Too many key characters were omitted from the movie and those that remained seemed to have lost their voices by being given too few lines. All in all a nice movie, and beautifully shot and acted, but not a true representation of the book or the true events.

I had never heard of this film and spotted it on a shelf at a rental store some years ago. I started watching it (first few minutes is need to get you to the outback) and suddenly was engulfed by it's brilliance. I watched it all the way through then called three friends and threatened them if they didn't drop what they were doing and get to my house. We all watched it. They all paid the late fees so they could take turns having friends over to watch it. You think life is rough now? Wait till you see what this woman endures and conquers with her incredible husband, the ranch hands and the aborigines.

"We of the Never Never" is a rare film. A near-epic made by and starring people from Australia. I can't really say whether no Hollywood people were involved, but it doesn't seem so.

Most Americans will have a some trouble understanding dialogue here and there. I have spent time in Oz and N.Z. and I didn't catch some of it. Just another reason why it's a true Australian production.

And it's quite upfront for 1982. The interaction/friction between Aboriginals and Whites is not most of the film, but a large part of it.

But to see it is to see something uniquely Australian, IMHO. Got to read the book!

This movie strays way too far from the book. The entire story line from the time they get to Elsey takes a turn away from the truth, as told by Mrs Aeneas Gunn. While the movie is visually beautiful, I was sad to see that all the parts of the book which were particularly special, like her relationship with the stockmen, were traded in for a conflict based on race. Even her relationship with the Maluka is cheapened. I would like to see this book remade into a movie that is truer to the original.

I found this a very beautiful film, with charismatic leads and a very realistic portrayal of outback hatdships, the predicament of the aborigines, and the fleetingness of life amidst death. It looks great and has a good romantic score. I felt for this couple, shared their hopes and their losses. My only gripe is that I may have watched a cut version, as there seemed to be a few jumps in time, and not enough of the interesting background characters

This is an excellent film based on true experience in a harsh environment. So much better than most of the films of today. We need more of this type of film. It is not a feel good film only either as it is based on facts. True aborigines are fantastic people and it is a pity more and meaningful assistance wasn't provided way back then. They were a skillful and talented race from which we could have learned much and should have been treated with much more dignity. If only they had been incorporated in the decision making of how they would liked to have been treated things for them today might be different. The acting in the film is great and the casting excellent. The beginnings of some of the earlier acting careers of later familiar faces is great to witness. The comradeship and values (apart from those towards the aborigines) of the time is something that is not always evident today.

The Never Never is Australia's home-grown version of a hostile environment. Bad enough now with modern conveniences but brutal in the early 1900s. Survival depended on factors few today could fathom. This movie is an open window to that time. It's about relationships that had to be built from the sweat and dust of hard work. Hollywood doesn't have its mark on this one so see it for certain. The right drama with the right characters. Professional acting producing a beautiful memory.