ViewGuide

Created Mar 10, 2011 10:25AM PST • Edited Mar 10, 2011 10:26AM PST

1. Quality

2. Summary

   Good 3.0

   A moving, true story set in Western Australia in 1931 about three aboriginal girls, taken from their homes, and sent to a camp where they can learn to be servants "to save them from themselves.” Mr. A.O. Neville (Kenneth Brannagh), the Chief Protector of Aborigines, is the legal guardian of every Aborigine in the State of Western Australia. As part of his egregious views on aboriginal half-caste children, he has them forcibly removed from homes and sent to camps to learn servitude. Such is what happens to Molly, Daisy, and Gracie, who are savagely ripped from their mother’s arms and sent over 1,000 miles away.

   In a bold and defiant move, the children try to escape the oppressive conditions of the camp, and travel across the Outback by foot to their home in Jigalong, following a countrywide government fence that happens to run by their home.

   The children are resilient in their quest and their determination and story is remarkable. The movie itself, while powerful and beautifully filmed, fails to invest enough time in character development to capture them beyond a cursory relationship. It’s a powerful story that could have been made better by investing more into the backgrounds off the characters, even those who are morally repulsive.

   Social justice films are a wonderful tool in documenting change so that we learn of our mistakes, triumphs, and history. I applaud the filmmakers for not only telling a story of endurance and triumph of the human spirit, but one that teaches us of our own failings as a civilization. Highlighting those injustices through film should be celebrated, and on those grounds, Rabbit Proof Fence does not disappoint.

   Watched on Netflix streaming.

4. Acting

   Good 3.0

5. Male Stars OK 2.5

   Brannagh is decent of his portryal. Not spectacular, but decent enough to be convincing as the misguided government official.

6. Female Stars Good 3.0

   The three actors who portrayed the young girls are very good in their portrayal of doe-eyed innocent children, forced to endure these experiences.

7. Female Costars Good 3.0

8. Male Costars Good 3.0

   David Gulpilil, who plays an aboriginal tracker, has wonderful facial expressions that convey the mistrust and contempt his character feels for the captors.

10. Film

    Good 3.0

11. Direction Good 3.0

    Decent direction overall.

12. Play OK 2.5

    A bit slow at times.

13. Music Good 3.0

    Frequent use of Aboriginal music adds to the experience.

14. Visuals Very Good 3.5

    Beautiful scenery, including overhead shots form the air, highlight the vastness of the Outback. Utilization of red-filtered lense adds to the sense of heat and dirt in the desert.

15. Content

16. Edge

    Risqué 1.6

17. Sex Innocent 1.0

    Nothing noticible.

18. Violence Fierce 1.8

    Difficult to watch children ripped form the arms of parents.

19. Rudeness Salty 2.1

    Racisim is a difficult and unpleasant subject matter, and the use of children as servents and being forcibly removed can be frightening for younger children watching this movie. However, this is a story that needs to be told.

21. Reality

    Natural 1.0

22. Circumstantial Natural 1.0

23. Biological Natural 1.0

24. Physical Natural 1.0