Casey Chong with six great Australian crime movies of the 1980s…
The crime genre in Australian film history stretches way back to 1906, which was ironically the world’s first feature-length film titled The Story of the Kelly Gang. By the 1980s, Australian cinema had significantly evolved into a new era, with notable filmmakers like Philip Noyce and Richard Franklin find intriguing ways to explore their crime movies. With that in mind, here are the six great 80s crime movies from Down Under to add to your watchlist…
Heatwave (1982)
Years before Philip Noyce crossed over to Hollywood, one of his earlier features was Heatwave, a dark crime drama inspired by the true story of Juanita Nielsen, who disappeared without a trace in 1975. The Nielsen character is fictionalized under the name of Mary Ford played by Carole Skinner, and interestingly, she isn’t even the centerpiece of the movie but rather serves as part of the larger storytelling. The title in question refers to the sweltering heat of the summer in Sydney but the weather isn’t the only thing that’s been bugging everyone.
The story follows Kate Dean (Judy Davis, in her engaging performance), who leads the protest alongside newspaper editor Mary Ford and the frustrated Kings Cross residents against the demolition of the houses in favor of an upcoming housing project. Noyce, who also co-wrote the screenplay, gets ambitious by spreading his focus across multiple characters, one of which includes the architect behind the housing project, Stephen West (Richard Moir), who ends up in an unlikely relationship with Kate. This allows Noyce to explore his movie from different angles, covering everything from corruption to the murder mystery surrounding Mary’s disappearance, social injustice and capitalism. There’s no sugar-coating within his matter-of-fact direction, which perfectly reflects the brutal nature of the title.
Shame (1988)
Shame was the only time Steve Jodrell directed a feature-length film before he moved on to television. Even so, he made a lasting impact in the Australian cinema with the story about a motorcycle-riding barrister, Asta Cadell (a no-nonsense Deborra-Lee Furness) from Perth who determined to fight the injustice of the sexual assault that happens in a small town remains as relevant as ever. One of the victims includes Lizzie (Simone Buchanan), a teenage daughter of a local mechanic who was gang-raped, but the police hardly do anything about it while the residents simply turn a blind eye.
Despite the premise, Jodrell isn’t interested in exploiting the subject matter and turning it into a rape-revenge fantasy. Instead, he prefers to keep things grounded with a strong feminist spin seen from Asta’s perspective. She’s hardly a damsel in distress, even when she confronts the harassing young men. She can defend herself well enough and only resorts to violence if anyone tries to hurt her. Her performance alone single-handedly carries the weight of this grim and pessimistic crime movie.
Road Games (1981)
Richard Franklin gives Road Games a Hitchcockian spin to the road movie genre with Stacy Keach playing a trucker hauling frozen meat across the long stretch of Nullarbor Plain. His only companion is a pet dingo and his journey consists of observing drivers on the road and even making up stories about them just to kill time. Similar to Hitchcock’s protagonist archetypes, Keach’s Pat Quid is depicted as a flawed anti-hero and he does a great job playing a role that’s both funny and engaging.
The movie also stars Jamie Lee Curtis as one of the hitchhikers and a murder plot about a serial killer on the loose. Franklin effectively delves into the dread-inducing paranoia surrounding Pat’s suspicion over the alleged wanted serial killer who drives the green van. With his character deprived of sleep and the nature of his job traveling a significantly long distance allows Franklin to throw in some herrings that Pat might be imagining things. This helps to keep the movie interesting while it’s hard not to root for Keach’s character throughout the movie, especially given his odd but likable personality.
Blood Money (1980)
Clocking in just 62 minutes, this low-budget crime movie boasts a simple but effective premise: An aging criminal, Pete Shields (a perfectly world-weary John Flaus) finds out he has terminal cancer but instead of settling down, he returns to Melbourne to reunite with his family (one of which includes Bryan Brown in one of his earlier roles as Pete’s younger brother, Brian) and attempts to pull off one last job.
Flaus may steal the show here but kudos also go to Brown in his solid support as a criminal trying to turn over a new leaf. Writer-director Christopher Fitchett manages to make good use of the limited budget and resources to execute some better-than-expected set pieces, notably the violent robbery scene earlier in the movie. The movie is also thoroughly cynical right from the start to the increasingly downbeat finale.
Grievous Bodily Harm (1988)
Mark Joffe’s AFI-nominated Grievous Bodily Harm focuses on three primary characters interconnected to each other, beginning with an emotionally disturbed schoolteacher (John Waters) who believes his wife is still alive; a crime reporter (Colin Friels) who becomes intrigued over a serial murder case; and a relentless police detective (Bruno Lawrence) who prefer to do things his own way.
The intricate story can be confusing at times, but Joffe, who made his feature-length directorial debut after venturing into music video and television, does an overall commendable job keeping the suspense and intrigue mostly intact. The three principal cast displays excellent performances, notably John Waters’ obsessed character on the verge of a psychological breakdown. The movie also features then-newcomer Joy Bell in her sultry supporting turn as the schoolteacher’s alleged dead wife.
Dead Calm (1989)
Dead Calm is Philip Noyce’s most notable Australian thriller and it’s easy to see why. The movie boasts a trio of stellar cast including Sam Neill, Nicole Kidman and Billy Zane. The latter two are particularly noteworthy with Kidman’s scene-stealing performance playing the wife, who’s willing to go as far as manipulating Zane’s charismatic psycho role using the power of sexuality for the sake of survival.
Noyce shows great control over his tight direction in the movie’s single-location thriller in the confines of a yacht stranded in the middle of the ocean. Here, he successfully generates a mix of claustrophobic tension and psychological exploit to engrossing results. Dead Calm famously earned then-unknown 20-year-old Kidman a breakthrough performance and launched her career outside Australia.
What other Australian crime movies from the 1980s are worthy of a spot on our list? Let us know on our social channels @FlickeringMyth…
Casey Chong
