The Drover's Wife: The Legend of Molly Johnson, or simply The Drover's Wife, is a 2021 Australian revisionist Western film directed, written, and co-produced by Leah Purcell in her feature directorial debut. It is an adaptation of Purcell's 2016 play and a reimagining of Henry Lawson's 1892 short story. The film stars Purcell, Rob Collins, Sam Reid, and Jessica De Gouw. It tells the story of a woman and her stubborn determination to protect her family from the harshness of a life in 1893 in the Snowy Mountains.
| The Drover's Wife: The Legend of Molly Johnson | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Leah Purcell |
| Screenplay by | Leah Purcell |
| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Mark Wareham |
| Edited by | Dany Cooper |
| Music by | Salliana Seven Campbell |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Roadshow Films |
Release dates |
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Running time | 109 minutes |
| Country | Australia |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $7.2 million[1] |
The film had its world premiere at South by Southwest on 18 March 2021, and was released in Australia on 5 May 2022, by Roadshow Films. It received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised Purcell's direction and screenplay, as well as the performances of the cast (particularly those of Purcell, Collins, and De Gouw). It garnered thirteen nominations, including Best Film, at the 12th AACTA Awards, with Purcell winning Best Lead Actress.
Plot
editThis article is missing information about the rest of the story. (March 2024) |
The film opens with a scene in which Molly Johnson (Leah Purcell), heavily pregnant, shoots a stray bull which has wandered near her home, after ensuring that her four children are safe.
Shortly afterwards the new sergeant of the district, Sergeant Klintoff (Sam Reid), turns up with his sickly wife, Louisa (Jessica De Gouw), asking if they could share some of the meat that they smelt cooking, as they had lost all of their provisions when crossing the river. She gives them food in exchange for their taking her children to the settlement for safekeeping while her new baby is born. Molly asks the Klintoffs to take her children with them into town so that Danny, the eldest son, can get more supplies.
Meanwhile, a wife and children of the area's founding family and an Aboriginal man called Yadaka (Rob Collins) is blamed and is a wanted man. After Molly returns from a walk, finds Yadaka face down in the yard, as she has contractions, signaling the impending birth of her baby. Yadaka begins to attack Molly, but stops and helps her when her waters break instead. The baby does not survive, and Yadaka assists in burying it.
Yadaka stays at the homestead while he does odd jobs for Molly which includes felling trees and teaching Danny how to use a spear.
As the police focus their efforts on finding Yadaka they ask the townspeople if they have seen him but when they become increasingly suspicious of Joe Johnson's disappearance when his horse has been left to a horse hitch and learning he didn't turn up for the drove.
The judge welcomes Nate into the town and says if he makes to Sunday he will swear him in, and when a fight breaks out Nate stops the fight and is cheered on and at the station and when two drovers Robert (Tony Cogin) and John who are in lockup being released reveal that Joe had never missed a drove in 8 years. Klintoff sends Trooper Leslie to investigate the homestead where Molly is and during a confrontation, Leslie is shot and killed after he says that Molly is to be questioned over Joe's disappearance.
Molly refuses to answer for why Joe has disappeared but later reveals to Yadaka that she killed him. Later that night Molly is attacked by Joe's drover friends Robert and John with Robert punching Yadaka in the face after Robert spots that he is wearing Joe's boots, Molly tries to defend Yadaka and says that he was doing work for her and as payment she gave him Joe's boots. Robert having none of it said he overhead Molly talking with Yadaka and says that Molly killed Joe and doesn't know why. As Molly tries to protect herself she is assaulted, and Yadaka is tied up and placed in a tree and Molly later wakes in the night to find her son Danny had dragged her into the house and Molly tries to lie to Danny that his father died while on drove, but Danny knows the whole truth, he watched her shoot his father after he assaulted her in a drunken rage, as Molly asks Danny where his siblings are and he says that they are still in town with the McGuiness' and that Shirley (Maggie Dence) has said that the kids are safer with her then Molly. Molly rides into town and she goes to the McGuiness' home and retrieves her children telling her that her kids belong with her.
Nate tells Louisa that he is becoming increasingly suspicious of Molly as he tells her that when they arrived at her homestead he could smell something sweet and says that the smell was something he was familiar with in the war, and deduces that Molly had killed Joe.
Molly tries to run to the safety of the mountains but when riding she is stopped by one of the same drovers who assaulted her, thinking of her children, Molly tells Danny to leave and make it to the place in that stories and when he does Molly is hit and John (Trevor Greenwood) tries to rape her again but Molly stabs him and he dies as Nate arrives on scene. As Molly is arrested and while in lockup she tells her story to Louisa who asks where her children are and had it always been so violent, Molly tells her story as Louisa listens.
Molly is sentenced to death by hanging. As she is taken to the tree, Louisa and several women from the suffrage movement see her in her final moments just before she dies. Meanwhile, Molly's kids make it to the safety of the mountains.
As the story ends, we see the article Louisa had written that she was writing when she spoke with Molly before her death. The article is titled "The Drover's Wife - Molly Johnson's Story." The article is in a frame on a piece of furniture in the house of an adult Danny. Outside the house, on the front porch, the adult Danny retells to his family the story that Yadaka had taught him years earlier.
Cast
edit- Leah Purcell as Molly Johnson
- Rob Collins as Yadaka
- Sam Reid as Sergeant Nate Klintoff
- Jessica De Gouw as Louisa Klintoff
- Benedict Hardie as Trooper Leslie
- Tony Cogin as Robert Parsens
- Harry Greenwood as John McPharlen
- Malachi Dower-Roberts as Danny Johnson
- Nash Zammit-Harvey as Joe Junior Johnson
- Jobe Zammit-Harvey as Henry James Johnson
- Amahlia Olsson as Delphi Johnson
- Nicholas Hope as Judge Eisenmangher
- Bruce Spence as Father McGuiness
- Maggie Dence as Shirley McGuiness
- Tammy MacIntosh as Marti Murray
- Sean Lynch as Jonathan Edwards
- Victoria Haralabidou as Elpida Sava
Origin
editThe plot is a reworking of Henry Lawson's 1892 short story The Drover's Wife, but deviates significantly from the original story as developed in Purcell's earlier award-winning play and novel of the same name. It tells the story of a woman living with her children in an isolated location in the High Country in the colony of New South Wales near the border of the colony of Victoria.[2]
Purcell reimagines Lawson's story through an Indigenous feminist lens, inspired by her own lived experience and the stories of her ancestors.[3] The character of Yadaka was inspired by Purcell's great-grandfather, Tippo Charlie Chambers.[2]
Production
editThe story is set in the Snowy Mountains and much of the filming was done there, mostly around Adaminaby. Cinematography was by Mark Wareham.[2]
It is Purcell's debut film as director and writer. It is the first Australian feature film to be written and directed by an Indigenous woman who also stars in the lead role.[3] Her husband, Bain Stewart, is lead producer and executive producer on the film.[4]
The original soundtrack is by Salliana Seven Campbell.[5]
Release
editAfter being delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic,[4] the film had its world premiere at South by Southwest (SXSW) on 18 March 2021.[6] It also screened at the Warsaw International Film Festival,[7] Cinefest Oz, the Melbourne International Film Festival, the Brisbane International Film Festival[8] and the 68th Sydney Film Festival[9] before being released in Australia on 5 May 2022[10] and in the United Kingdom on 13 May 2022.[11]
International sales were handled by Memento Films International.[12] In March 2021, it was announced that Samuel Goldwyn Films had acquired North American distribution rights to the film.[13] It was released in the United States on 19 August 2022.[14]
Reception
editThe film opened to generally positive reviews. The acting, cinematography and Salliana Seven Campbell's score were praised by several critics.[5][15][16][17][18][9][11]
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 80% of 61 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.7/10. The website's consensus reads: "The Drover's Wife: The Legend of Molly Johnson occasionally struggles to cohere, but writer-director-star Leah Purcell offers a unique, compelling perspective on historic myths."[19]
Accolades
editAt the Asia Pacific Screen Awards, The Drover's Wife won the Jury Grand Prix and Purcell was nominated for the Best Actress award.[7]
It won the Jury Grand Prix, Best feature film, at the 2022 Rencontres internationales du cinéma des Antipodes (Antipodean Film Festival).[20]
The film was also a nominee for the following awards:[7]
- Cinefest Oz Film Prize
- Sydney Film Festival, Best Film
- Warsaw International Film Festival, Best Film, International Competition
Awards
edit| Award | Category | Subject | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| AACTA Awards (12th)[21] |
Best Film | Bain Stewart, David Jowsey, Angela Littlejohn, Greer Simpkin, Leah Purcell | Nominated |
| Best Direction | Leah Purcell | Nominated | |
| Best Screenplay | Nominated | ||
| Best Actor | Rob Collins | Nominated | |
| Best Actress | Leah Purcell | Won | |
| Best Supporting Actor | Malachi Dower-Roberts | Nominated | |
| Best Supporting Actress | Jessica De Gouw | Nominated | |
| Best Cinematography | Mark Wareham | Nominated | |
| Best Costume Design | Tess Scofield | Nominated | |
| Best Production Design | Sam Hobbs | Nominated | |
| Best Original Score | Salliana Seven Campbell | Nominated | |
| Best Sound | Liam Egan, Nick Emond, Leah Katz, Robert Sullivan, Tom Heuzenroeder, Les Fiddess | Nominated | |
| Best Hair and Makeup | Beth Halsted, Simon Joseph, Jennifer Lamphee | Nominated | |
| APRA-AGSC Screen Music Awards (2022)[22][23] |
Feature Film Score of the Year | Sallianna Seven Campbell | Won |
References
edit- ^ Hornery, Andrew (10 July 2022). "Our film industry may be booming but we're not telling Australian stories". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 24 July 2022. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
- ^ a b c Carrigy, Megan (9 November 2021). "The Drover's Wife: the Legend of Molly Johnson brings a Black woman's perspective to Australian frontier films". The Conversation. Archived from the original on 31 May 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
- ^ a b Gbogbo, Mawunyo (3 May 2022). "The Drover's Wife: The Legend of Molly Johnson is a compelling story weaving in present and historical truths". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 4 October 2024. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
- ^ a b First, Alex (7 May 2022). "The Drover's Wife: The Legend of Molly Johnson - movie review". The Blurb. Archived from the original on 31 May 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
- ^ "Film Grid". SXSW. 13 March 2021. Archived from the original on 4 October 2024. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
- ^ a b c "The Drover's Wife the Legend of Molly Johnson". IMDb. 31 May 2022. Archived from the original on 4 October 2024. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
- ^ "The Drover's Wife The Legend of Molly Johnson (2022)". Screen Australia. The Screen Guide. 26 April 2022. Archived from the original on 31 May 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
- ^ a b Zhou, Debbie (8 November 2021). "The Drover's Wife: The Legend of Molly Johnson review – riveting but heavy-handed outback western". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 4 October 2024. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
- ^ "The Drover's Wife The Legend of Molly Johnson: behind the scenes". Screen Australia. 26 April 2022. Archived from the original on 31 May 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
- ^ a b "The Drover's Wife review — an Australian period drama of widescreen confidence". Financial Times. 12 May 2022. Archived from the original on 31 May 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
- ^ Keslassy, Elsa (20 February 2020). "Memento Films Intl. Boards Leah Purcell's Aussie Revenge Tale 'The Drover's Wife' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on 8 June 2021. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
- ^ Keslassy, Elsa (10 March 2021). "Leah Purcell's SXSW-Bound 'The Drover's Wife' Acquired by Samuel Goldwyn For North America (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on 8 October 2023. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
- ^ "THE DROVER'S WIFE THE LEGEND OF MOLLY JOHNSON" (PDF) (Press release). Samuel Goldwyn Films. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 December 2023. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
- ^ "Five-star movie review / 'The Drover's Wife'". Canberra CityNews. 7 May 2022. Archived from the original on 29 May 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
- ^ Knight, Aimee (11 May 2022). "The Drover's Wife review – A harrowing ode to womanhood in the Outback". Little White Lies. Archived from the original on 4 October 2024. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
- ^ York, Keva (5 May 2022). "The Drover's Wife the Legend of Molly Johnson review: Henry Lawson tale turns revisionist western in Leah Purcell's hands". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 31 May 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
- ^ Russell, Stephen A. (4 May 2022). "The Drover's Wife review: the legend of Molly Johnson is more riveting than ever". Time Out Worldwide. Archived from the original on 4 October 2024. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
- ^ The Drover's Wife at Rotten Tomatoes
- ^ "All the Awards from Festival des Antipodes". Rencontres Internationales du Cinéma des Antipodes. Archived from the original on 28 February 2024. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
- ^ "Winners & Nominees". AACTA. 23 October 2022. Archived from the original on 27 September 2021. Retrieved 24 October 2022.
- ^ "Screen Music Awards: Full List of Winners & Nominees". APRA AMCOS Australia. 2022. Archived from the original on 4 May 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- ^ "2022 Screen Music Awards Winners Announced". APRA AMCOS Australia. 15 November 2022. Archived from the original on 6 May 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
Further reading
edit- Horáková, Martina (5 April 2022). ""Kin-fused" revenge: Rewriting the canon and settler belonging in Leah Purcell's The Drover's Wife". Journal of Postcolonial Writing. 58 (4). Informa UK: 511–523. doi:10.1080/17449855.2022.2051867. ISSN 1744-9855. S2CID 248014894.